Fishtech, BacklotCars, Bardavon named to Forbes’ 2020 best startup employers list
March 10, 2020 | Startland News Staff
A trio of fast-growing Kansas City companies are among the 500 best startup employers in the nation, according to a new ranking from Forbes.
Fishtech Group — one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2020 — lead the local honorees at No. 277 on Forbes’ list.
BacklotCars was ranked at No. 339, followed by Bardavon Health Innovations at No. 439.
Click here to see the full list of America’s Best Startup Employers for 2020.
“Those who are drawn to [working at] early-stage companies may have different professional priorities than those at more established firms, but the qualities they value most in employers are surprisingly similar,” the Forbes report read.
Such values include a clear mission, learning and development opportunities, transparency, and a flexible structure, according to the report. The top 500 list was compiled by evaluating 2,500 American businesses with at least 50 employees on three criteria: employer reputation, employee satisfaction and growth.
High-end amenities and cutting-edge office space also likely help.
Fishtech, a rapidly growing cyber security firm, boasts a sprawling Martin City campus with a more than $10 million cyber defense center. BacklotCars, which offers a wholesale platform for auto dealers, relocated in 2019 to fill a full floor of the newly renovated Lightwell building in downtown Kansas City.
Click here to take a closer look at Fishtech’s headquarters.
For Bardavon, the recognition was unexpected, said Matt Condon, the healthcare startup’s CEO.
“This was a surprise to us. However, we unapologetically expect that Bardavon will continue to be recognized as a national market force for evolving and improving healthcare,” he said. “Because of our unique mission to optimize outcomes by focusing on clinical data and disintermediating the claims process through technology and transparency, we have been able to recruit some of the best talent in the country to our Bardavon team.”
Bardavon is one of 62 healthcare startups and one of only nine healthcare startups in the Midwest; the rest are located on the east or west coasts, the company emphasized.
Bardavaon was named one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2018.
Featured Business

2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
How wearables could change America’s pastime and Amazon’s big oops
In this week’s roundup of watercooler talk from the region’s startup hubs, we have the dish on Major League Baseball wearables, Amazon’s flub with expanding the digital divide and Chicago’s STEM workforce issues. Check out more in this series here. Mobile Commerce Press: Major League Baseball gives the nod to wearable technology No, this doesn’t…
Kauffman Foundation CEO serves up 5 policies for entrepreneurial growth
Adaptation, experimentation and research. No, those aren’t tips to run a startup. Rather, they’re a few of the recommendations for lawmakers to consider if they’d like to spur nationwide entrepreneurial growth, according to Wendy Guillies, CEO of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Now nearly a year into her tenure as CEO, Guillies recently presented five…
Google opens applications for Digital Inclusion Fellowship
Just two months after it unveiled free access to gigabit internet for low-income households in Kansas City, Google Fiber is again ramping up efforts to close the digital divide. In partnership with the Nonprofit Technology Network, Google Fiber has again opened applications for its Digital Inclusion Fellowship, this time looking for 22 bright minds to…


