We Give'Em Two Barrels - Every Day

What’s So Awesome about Two Barrels?

• We do lots of stuff in house. It’s all-too-common for modern tech companies to contract out writers and designers for individual projects. Some companies have developers who have never met in person because they’re all working remotely. Software engineers, systems engineers, front-end developers, designers, writers—at Two Barrels, we all worked in the same building, and now we’ve spread out all over the world. Full time, not contracted out. Every person who contributes to a product can talk to each other and work together from beginning to end. And one of the best things about this? We make really good friends here.
• We’re trusted to explore solutions. We often end up creating our own, smaller projects to fix problems, make processes more efficient, or improve SEO. We have freedom to test out hypotheses, try out new voices in writing projects, and build things that will help the team. We’re grouped by Products so we have full autonomy to make our products as amazing as we can dream up.
• We’re encouraged to have a life outside of work. So many employers are willing to lose an amazing employee because they’re unwilling to accommodate life outside of work. Employees have families. They have daycare drop-off times to negotiate. Late-night concerts. Early morning gym classes. Plumbing disasters. At Two Barrels, we need to see each other to work together, so we have a basic schedule of Monday through Friday, roughly 8 hours a day. But our start and end times are flexible. We can come in at 6am one day and 10am the next. If we need to take a two-hour break midday for a dentist appointment, that’s no problem.
• We don’t have to get promoted to get a raise. Honestly, the corporate ladder is kind of a dumb idea. Why hire the best engineers and designers and then tell them they can’t make more money unless they move up into management? That’s how companies lose their best workers (and end up with lousy management). At Two Barrels, we’re hired for the job we do best. Writers write. Coders code. Then we get annual raise opportunities. We never have to give up a position we love and excel at for a “promotion.”
• We have the tools we need for our jobs. A recent example—one of our designers made an offhand comment that illustrations would be much easier if she had an iPad Pro. The office manager told her to find one online and send her a link. She ordered it for her the same day, and our designer was illustrating on her new device within the week. The company trusts that we know what we need to do our jobs best. We don’t get everything under the sun (apparently we go through Slim Jims “too fast”), but we can request what we need and get it more often than not.
• We’re hired based on our skills, not made-up criteria. Some people here have 20+ years of experience. Others are just a year or two into the industry. A few people have multiple graduate degrees. Others are self-taught. What matters most is the skills we bring to the table.
• We’re allowed to be comfortable. We have an open office where we can get up whenever we want. We can listen to music. We have floor mats and standing desks for people who think better on their feet. We’re not client-facing, so there’s no dress code. Sneakers, heels, bunny slippers…we can work however we work best.
• We’re here for the long haul. We’ve grown so much that the company just bought a 65,000 square foot building in the heart of downtown Spokane. Our new home is currently being built out specifically to meet our team’s needs. Private space to work. Stand up areas. Sprint planning areas. Everything a modern tech team could dream of.

What’s Up with the Two Barrels Name?

Well. Glad you’re wondering. The name Two Barrels was inspired by the great thought leader: Yosemite Sam. Sometimes in software it can feel like you’re chasing a rascally rabbit around a tree. A bug gets the best of you. You over think it. You under think it. You over manage it. You under manage it. But we just keep coming and quite often sound like a blabbering bozo on the path. But we try to at least have fun while figuring it out. Even if it flops…. we know we gave it a full two barrels trying.