Skip to content

Seattle Culture

Hanson: Culture, Collaboration, Collegiality

Here’s why employees love working at Hanson Consulting Group

By Seattle Mag August 31, 2020

Dan-Award-Picturew

This article originally appeared in the November/December 2022 issue of Seattle magazine.

Solid leadership. A cooperative culture. Open communication, flexibility and transparency.

Those are just a few of the comments from employees extolling the exceedingly positive work environment at Kirkland’s Hanson Consulting Group. “Friendly geniuses are standing by,” reads a passage on the website. “You don’t work with Hanson Consulting Group – you work with an amazing team of super-talented individuals.”

The company has racked up numerous awards for its positive corporate culture, including being named four consecutive years as one of Seattle Business magazine’s “Washington’s 100 Best Companies to Work For.” Hanson Consulting specializes in finance and operations, gaming and entertainment, IT and solutions delivery and managed services.

The company was founded in 2008by CEO Amy Hanson, a self-described data nerd who has more than 20 years of finance, IT, business operations and management experience. Hanson previously held various management positions at Microsoft Corp. and also served as controller for Fonte Coffee.

Hanson wins a staggering 90% of its proposals. Its employee retention rate is an impressive 95%.

“Amy and her team are wonderful at communicating things going on with the company and keeping us all connected,” one employee wrote. “As vendors, sometimes it’s hard to feel part of a company when your day-to-day job is for someone else. Hanson Consulting makes sure that we all remember how much we can depend on them.”

Wrote another: “I have had a number of offers with other companies since coming to work for Hanson, but I have absolutely no desire to leave. This is by far the most inclusive, positive working environment I’ve ever experienced. “

Hanson scores particularly high among employees for its comprehensive retirement savings program and its flexibility around working hours, telecommuting and job-sharing opportunities.

“Hands down, my favorite thing about Hanson Consulting Group is working for the owner, Amy Hanson. In my 35-plus years of experience, I have never known a business owner who worked so hard for their employees,” one employee wrote. “She always puts us first with our benefits, salaries, health, etc., and she never makes a decision for the company without taking her employees into consideration.”

Besides its keen internal and customer-oriented focus, Hanson also prioritizes the community. The Hanson Scholarship Fund, established in 2016, helps first-generation college students and students from lower-income homes pursuing bachelor’s degrees in science, technology, engineering and math at Central Washington University. To date, the Hanson Scholarship Fund has 41 scholars attending Central Washington University.

In addition to the Hanson Scholarship Fund, Hanson serves on the Goodwill board of directors and is a founding member of the Goodwill Women’s Empowerment Fund, a program that supports job training and educational opportunities for women. During these unprecedented times, Goodwill’s job training programs are more important than ever.

Hanson also supports the Washington State Opportunity Scholarship, the YWCA and THON, an organization that works with families affected by childhood cancer.

Follow Us

The DEI Backlash: Staying the Course

The DEI Backlash: Staying the Course

DEI and merit are not contradictory

The backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives has gained momentum in recent months, fueled by political and cultural divisiveness. Some critics have linked DEI policies to high-profile incidents, such as the mid-air collision between an American Airlines passenger plane and a military helicopter near Washington, D.C., Jan. 29. However, there is no credible…

Little Hands, Big Brands

Little Hands, Big Brands

Small ad agency lands major clients

Michael Boychuk likes the critically acclaimed TV show Mad Men as much as anyone. It’s not inaccurate, he says, just romanticized. He should know. Boychuk, who cut his teeth at venerable Seattle ad agency WongDoody, now runs Little Hands of Stone, an independent creative agency with a modest office in the Fremont neighborhood, with partner…

Editor's Note: The Microsoft Way

Editor’s Note: The Microsoft Way

The past matters. The future matters more.

Brad Smith first visited Microsoft’s Redmond campus as a young lawyer in 1990. The cab driver got lost on the way from Sea-Tac Airport. Imagine that happening today. The tech sector exploded shortly thereafter. Suddenly, everybody knew Microsoft. The region quickly became more cosmopolitan, more diverse, more affluent. It earned a global reputation, all because…

The Hits Keep on Coming for Bartell Drugs

The Hits Keep on Coming for Bartell Drugs

The last few times I was at Bartell Drugs, it was a sad sight. This was several months ago. Entire aisles were barren at both the Queen Anne and Ballard locations. Now, as the University Village Bartell Drugs is set to close late next month, I have to wonder what the future holds for a…