The eighth annual list is compiled by Entrepreneur.com and the Great Place to Work Institute. It has two categories: small (50 to 250 employees) and medium (251 to 999 employees). It is the sixth time Embrace, formerly Advanced Financial Services, made the list.

Applications are based on five criteria: credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie.

"While the mortgage industry has been hit hard by the economic downturn, Embrace Home Loans has nearly doubled in size in the past three years," Entrepreneur.com said about the ranking.

"The company's motto is 'not too big to feel,' and every morning the president sends an encouraging email and client letter to all employees to remind them how their work impacts people's lives," it said.

The website also touted the "Embrace Cares" program which offers employees 100 hours of paid time off every year for volunteering and donates $10 for every hour worked by the employee to the organization of their choice.

Working for Embrace includes perks such as: bonuses, free snacks, free beverages, personal concierge, mailing, dry cleaning and an on-site ATM.

It has 561 full and part time employees; its full-time voluntary turnover rate is 16 percent. It pays 80 percent of its employee health-care premiums and 80 percent of the dependents health-care premiums.

Its 2010 was $117.79 million, according to Entrepreneur.com.

“The companies featured on this year’s list are truly extraordinary in their practices and achievements,” said Susan Lucas-Conwell, CEO of Great Place to Work. “Their leaders recognize the value of creating great workplaces and the competitive edge it provides them.”

“All credit goes to our leaders who have continually communicated the challenges and the corporate responses to our entire work force. Practicing this open-book value has raised our mutual trust to new heights, and has inspired our workforce toward greater unity, respect, and awareness,” said Embrace President Kurt Noyce.