Dallas-based Will Reed—an executive search firm that exclusively serves seed through Series C startups—is out with its annual Top 100 list of early-stage companies that are shaping the future of workplace culture in 2023.

The list spotlights 34 Seed and 66 Series A B2B companies across the U.S., that are “at the forefront of curating thoughtful, caring, and innovative cultures.” To create the list, Will Reed asked VC firms and startup peers who are ineligible for the award, as well as previous Top 100 winners who are ineligible this year, to nominate “culture-cultivating” companies. Will Reed then contact the nominees directly in a call for applications, and combined qualitative and quantitative data to generate a a culture score, enhanced by a business score and other criteria.

Three North Texas companies made the Top 100 list:

No. 12 :: Leadr, a Plano-based human resources and leadership development software startup. Co-founded in 2018 by Executive Chairman Chris Heaslip and CEO Matt Tresidder, Leadr more than doubled its footprint in 2022 by moving its HQ from Plano’s Legacy Central Business Park to The Campus at Legacy. Leadr’s software focuses on giving managers insights into the health of their workplace based on things like engagement, rapport, and satisfaction. It also helps managers develop future leaders in their workforce by facilitating one-on-one meetings and creating actionable goals for individual employees based on their desired career paths within the company and beyond.

No. 28 :: Take Command, a Dallas-based SaaS company that delivers “seamless defined contribution benefits with heart.” Founded in 2014 by CEO Jack Hooper, Take Command helps companies reimburse their employees for health insurance tax-free. The company made Dallas Innovates’ Future 50 list for 2023. Hooper set out to provide less expensive, more understandable options for health benefits that are more tailored to individuals—via its Health Reimbursement Arrangements platform—than traditional, one-size-fits-all group health plans are. HRAs are tax-advantaged, employer-based plans that reimburse employees for their qualified medical expenses.

No. 44 :: Dottid, an all-in-one commercial real estate asset management platform for streamlining business operations. Founded in 2018 by CEO Kyle Waldrep, Dottid brings together leasing, CapEx, valuation, debt, and powerful reporting into one place, simplifying asset management into “a single source of truth” for all asset data across a company’s teams. In late August, the startup announced its looming debut of Dottid AI, which marks the company’s initial move toward empowering asset management teams with a suite of AI features within Dottid.

The Top 5 companies on Will Reed’s list included San Francisco-based AI startup Bardeen at No. 1, followed by San Francisco-based remote teams software startup Almanac, L.A.-based real estate tech company SNAPPT, New York-based employee health and safety platform Intenseye, and San Francisco-based Goldsky, which helps crypto builders create “rich, instant, data-driven experiences.”

You can real the full Top 100 list by going here.

Will Reed noted that some of the top early-stage culture trends and best practices for 2023 include, in its words:

• Giving back: Top 100 companies are offering Paid Volunteer Time and including volunteer activities at their offsites.
• Hiring: 92% of Top 100 companies are growing their teams over the next 12 months. What’s the most sought-after role? Marketing executives.
• DEIB: Top 100 companies are pushing to have a leadership team comprised of 50% women.
• Burnout: Top 100 companies are employing creative tactics (e.g. flexible summer hours, minimum PTO, async days, etc.) to keep their teams moving fast without burning out.

Will Reed will be hosting an in-person winners’ event exclusively for the founder and CEO of each of the Top 100 companies on September 28. “This will be a rare opportunity for them to experience a truly founder-exclusive event where they are running companies all at the same stages and will be in a room together to collaborate, network, and share how they are overcoming culture challenges,” the executive search firm noted.

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