Stefanie Cope

Staff Writer



Google is the best employer in the United States.

Last week, Fortune magazine released its annual ranking of best companies to work for in the U.S.

Google is No. 1.

In 2007 and 2008, Google was listed in first place and the following three years Google placed fourth.

Google opened a data center in Pryor last year. The Pryor center offers perks such as a mechanical bull, foosball tables, pool tables and a game room in an effort to keep employees in a relaxed environment.

The center also offers on-site lunches provided by local restaurants and an open culture that promotes innovation and personal development. Google sponsors activities each quarter for employees to interact outside the office.

Senior Data Center Facility Manager Mike Edwards has been with Google for four years. He originally worked at a center in Atlanta.

He said one of the things he enjoys most about Google is the trust it has for its employees. He said Google hires good people and sets the environment for people to be successful.

Edwards said he enjoys the technical challenges.

“The chance to be part of the innovative process is cool,” he said.

He said he enjoys being a part of the infrastructure at the data center.

Edwards plans to stay at the Pryor center for as long as possible.

“I enjoy the community and I work with a great team,” Edwards said.

Pryor  Mayor Jimmy Tramel  had good things to say about the data center.

“It brings the city of Pryor to the world,” Tramel said.

He said Pryor has the capability and the manpower to run the data center. He said the center opened jobs to the community. He said the center enhances the ability to bring businesses to Pryor.

The data center has created more than 100 full-time, on-site jobs in the Pryor area and 12,100 businesses in Oklahoma are using Adwords, Adsense and Google Grants.

“Google is good for the community,” Tramel said.

The data center is a $600 million investment on the part of Google.

At the Pryor center, employees work to keep the Google Search, Gmail, YouTube and other Google operations going.