When it came to selecting a U.S. city, Sachs knew what she was looking for. An avowed feminist, Sachs wanted to locate where the local culture would support her non-hierarchical, consensual, egalitarian management style. In probing recruiters and industry people in the cities she visited, she found Seattle to be the best match. Silicon Valley is so cut-throat, recruiters routinely lure experienced developers away from rival companies. This is a smaller town.
Recruiters create a relationship with companies.
A recruiter is not going to recruit out of e-Safe. The Seattle area's smaller size also makes its software success stories more tangible, Sachs says. Beyond Microsoft, she points to RealNetworks, the company creating products to play audio and video over the Internet, and Asymetrics Learning Systems, an online learning systems developer, among others. Finally, Seattle technologists are fueled by a desire to make not just a lot of money but an impact as well, Sachs says. Everybody here is bitten by the bug.