Lexington Park, Maryland — AVIAN is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place To Work® for 2026. The prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at AVIAN: this year, 99% of employees said when you join the company, you are made to feel welcome. Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation.
"Great Place To Work Certification is a highly coveted achievement that requires consistent and intentional dedication to the overall employee experience," says Sarah Lewis-Kulin, the Vice President of Global Recognition at Great Place To Work. She emphasizes that Certification is the sole official recognition earned by the real-time feedback of employees regarding their company culture. “By successfully earning this recognition, it is evident that AVIAN stands out as one of the top companies to work for, providing a great workplace environment for its employees."
For many years, AVIAN has been recognized as a great place to work. AVIAN’s focus on people and culture is continually substantiated through external designations. Most recently, AVIAN has been awarded the 2026 Mid-Atlantic & Carolinas Chapter of The ESOP Association Employee-Owned Company of the Year, the 2025 Military Times Best for Vets: Employers, the 2025 HIRE Vets Medallion, and multiple Inc. Best Workplace honors in 2018, 2020, and 2022.
AVIAN operates under a people-based philosophy: “We care for our employees, our employees care for our clients, and our clients care to return. Simply put, we take care of each other.” As 96% of AVIAN employees attest, “People care about each other here.”
Tara Strickland, AVIAN’s Vice President of Employee Experience highlights the impact of employee-ownership on AVIAN’s culture: “When employee‑owners feel cared for, they create the supportive, collaborative atmosphere that defines AVIAN,” explains Strickland, “Our connection and shared commitment enable us to grow and succeed.”
As AVIAN’s co-founder Kevin Switick puts it, “We strive to be a company where creative, talented minds can flourish, and proactive, proficient professionals feel valued.”
According to Great Place To Work research, job seekers are 4.5 times more likely to find a great boss at a Certified great workplace. Additionally, employees at Certified workplaces are 93% more likely to look forward to coming to work, and are twice as likely to be paid fairly, earn a fair share of the company’s profits and have a fair chance at promotion.
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Looking to grow your career at a company that puts its people first? Visit our careers page at: www.avian.com/careers
About AVIAN
AVIAN is a purpose-built employee-owned company that thrives on creating solutions for complex challenges. Founded on the principle that people are our most valuable asset, we are a company of dreamers, thinkers, and doers who are committed to making a measurable impact in support of our customers' missions.
Headquartered in Lexington Park, Maryland, AVIAN delivers a wide array of professional services to government and commercial clients, primarily in support of the Department of Defense. We specialize in program, engineering, and acquisition management; test and evaluation; research and development; logistics; strategic communication; and training solutions. Our team’s deep-rooted expertise enables us to design and deliver high-impact, tailored services that enhance performance, reduce risk, and support informed decision-making.
At our core, we believe that ownership drives accountability and innovation. As an employee-owned company, every team member has a vested interest in our collective success. This ownership model fuels a culture of engagement, collaboration, and dedication that sets AVIAN apart in the industry. We foster a sense of shared purpose and pride that translates into higher-quality outcomes for our clients and meaningful career paths for our employees.
Our journey began with a small team of former military test pilots and engineers who understood firsthand the importance of agile, efficient, and precise support to military operations and technology development. Today, AVIAN has grown into a trusted partner across the defense community, bringing a human-centered approach to technical and strategic challenges.
About Great Place to Work Certification™
Great Place To Work® Certification™ is the most definitive “employer-of-choice” recognition that companies aspire to achieve. It is the only recognition based entirely on what employees report about their workplace experience – specifically, how consistently they experience a high-trust workplace. Great Place to Work Certification is recognized worldwide by employees and employers alike and is the global benchmark for identifying and recognizing outstanding employee experience. Every year, more than 10,000 companies across 60 countries apply to get Great Place To Work-Certified.
About Great Place To Work®
As the global authority on workplace culture, Great Place To Work® brings 30 years of groundbreaking research and data to help every place become a great place to work for all. Their proprietary platform and For All™ Model helps companies evaluate the experience of every employee, with exemplary workplaces becoming Great Place To Work Certified™ or receiving recognition on a coveted Best Workplaces™ List.
Learn more at greatplacetowork.com and follow Great Place To Work on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
