F5 Networks

F5, a tech firm that has grown from a small startup into a major provider of IT infrastructures to the world's biggest Fortune 50s, Internet search engines, universities and more, is one of Seattle's great success stories. Since its founding in 1996, it has grown to become a global leader in Application Delivery Networking and has won accolades like being named one of Fortune's 100 Fastest Growing Companies and Forbes' Best Small Companies in America. The company's more than 750 local employees also love the more personal perks of their workplace: the views of Elliott Bay on one side and the Space Needle on the other; a short walk up to Queen Anne Hill's great restaurants for lunch; afternoon strolls in the Olympic Sculpture Park; or renting the company-provided bicycles for a ride down to Pike Place Market. "We have the happiest, most productive employees in Seattle," one employee tells us.

Other top finalists*

• A Place For Mom
• Boeing
• Doubletree Hotel Seattle Airport
• Emeritus
• Moneytree
• Northwest Hospital & Medical Center
• Sound Mental Health
• Starbucks
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*Listed in alphabetical order