Work for America Named to Fast Company’s 2026 List of the World’s Most Innovative Companies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: press@workforamerica.org
Date: Tuesday, March 24, 2026
Work for America joins Mackenzie Scott’s Yield Giving, Sesame Workshop, USAFacts, and GiveDirectly on Fast Company’s list of most innovative not-for-profits.
BROOKLYN, NY — Work for America (WFA) has been named to Fast Company’s prestigious list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies of 2026, recognized in the nonprofit category for its work transforming how state and local governments recruit, hire, and inspire public sector talent. Since launching in late 2024, WFA is already working with more than 280 state and local governments to hire for roles that keep essential services running.
“Over the past year, as thousands of federal workers lost their jobs, we saw both a crisis and an opportunity: state and local governments were struggling to fill critical roles, and we realized we could connect those dots,” said Caitlin Lewis, Executive Director of Work for America.“Innovation in America depends on cities and states with functioning infrastructure, reliable services, and capable public servants. This recognition is a signal that building a well-staffed government is the foundation that makes all of it possible.”
Over the past year, WFA has built and scaled Civic Match, the first national talent platform designed specifically for state and local government hiring. Originally launched as a rapid-response effort during a period of mass federal workforce cuts, Civic Match has grown into a two-sided recruitment marketplace connecting thousands of experienced, mission-driven public servants with state and local governments.
Today, state and local governments across the country are using Civic Match to fill critical roles in areas like finance, human resources, communications, and operations. In an environment where public sector hiring often lags far behind the private sector, Civic Match is helping governments identify talent for the roles that keep essential services running.
WFA is expanding this work with its Talent Accelerator program, a cohort-based program designed to help city governments improve hiring systems from the inside out. The program equips teams with practical tools, data-driven strategies, and real-time support to fill hard-to-staff roles and build stronger, more resilient workforces.
Together, these efforts represent a new kind of infrastructure for public service hiring, one that combines technology, human connection, and on-the-ground partnership to solve a challenge that has long limited government’s ability to deliver for its communities.
The World’s Most Innovative Companies is Fast Company’s hallmark franchise and one of its most anticipated editorial efforts of the year. To determine honorees, Fast Company’s editors and writers review companies driving progress around the world and across industries, evaluating thousands of submissions through a highly competitive process.
“Our list of the Most Innovative Companies is about spotlighting organizations that don’t just adapt to change—they drive it,” said Brendan Vaughan, editor-in-chief of Fast Company.“The companies we honor this year are redefining what leadership looks like in 2026, pairing bold ideas with measurable impact and turning breakthrough innovation into real-world value. They are setting the pace for their industries and offering a blueprint for what sustained innovation can achieve.”
The full list of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies honorees can now be found at fastcompany.com and will also be available on newsstands beginning March 31, 2026.
Fast Company will host the Most Innovative Companies Summit and Gala for honorees on May 19 in New York City.
About Work for America
Work for America (WFA) is a nonpartisan nonprofit working to solve the government staffing crisis by helping state and local governments recruit, hire, and inspire the people they need to deliver for their communities. From launching Civic Match, a national platform connecting mission-driven talent with government jobs, to helping public sector teams bolster recruitment and hiring with practical, repeatable tools through Talent Accelerator workshops, WFA is making public service work better for the people it serves, and the people who serve. WFA’s work has been featured in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and TIME for its innovative approach to rebuilding the public workforce. Learn more here.
About Fast Company
Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with fellow business publication Inc. For more information, please visit fastcompany.com.
