"I'm not good at being a pressed-pants guy," said Barr, founder and principal of the Web development and e-commerce company.

Laid-back attire is a minor reflection of how Barr rejects traditional management styles, too.

Williams Forrest embraces what Barr calls a "pirate ship," or democratic, corporate culture where every employee has an equal vote on important matters including new clients, project direction and even who gets hired to the firm. It's more than just mundane voting though. The whole company discusses the best path for their business.

"You grow up thinking work should be one way," Barr said, "but everything evolves and sometimes that evolution is good. If you're squeezing new companies into traditional models, you'll get things that squeeze out the sides."

Workplace democracy is a fledgling, yet growing trend, supporters and academics said. Although companies use different types of democratic organization, the goal is the same: create a place where employees are as invested in company success as is the CEO.

Many more companies are moving toward some form of participatory workplace for that reason, said Ray Gibney, assistant professor of management in Penn State Harrisburg's business administration department. However, most companies still operate under an autocratic style where the top executive sets the direction and everyone else carries it out, he said.

"For a company to move to a voting process for decisions, that's unusual," he said.

Corporate democracy isn't mob rule; companies embracing it still function according to common goals and guidelines while giving workers more say in the business, executives said.

"We're not the Lost Boys (of Neverland)," Barr said. "We're trying to make money, but we're doing it in a way that makes sense for us."

It's still his company and he has a veto, but he said he's never used it. Also, unlike a pirate ship, Barr will not be thrown overboard if the crew gets restless.

Williams Forrest has been successful through the past six years using workplace democracy, in place since 2007, Barr said. Last year, it had revenue of $2 million. It's aiming to double that this year, he said. Employee retention is 98 percent, he said.

The client list has some big names on it, too: automaker BMW of North America, athletic equipment maker Puma and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy.

"There's more to a project than just one developer's thoughts," said Bill Blaettler, the newest member of Williams Forrest. He was hired just four weeks ago. "There are 15 people in this building. If we can do a quick roundtable, it's beneficial to the project and our clients."

Blaettler was hired the same as everyone else. He applied, was interviewed and tested for his skills. Then he went to dinner with the entire staff to see how he would fit in the company culture. And lastly, everyone discusses and votes in a staff meeting on the best candidate for the job.

Once Blaettler started working, the company surpassed his expectations for what a job should be: open and fun without being distracting, people cared about his ideas, and he gets a say in its direction. At 30 years old, he's had several jobs since college, but none really moved him the same way, he said.

"The first day, when I went home, I told my wife how alive it feels here," Blaettler said.

Cumberland County-based Messiah Lifeways, which includes social services and the Upper Allen Township retirement community Messiah Village, also embraces workplace democracy.

Messiah Lifeways calls it a participatory workplace, President Emerson Lesher said. The 600-employee nonprofit doesn't have staff votes on everything. But most day-to-day decisions are made at an individual, team and departmental level, he said. The decentralized process better addresses the needs of residents because edicts aren't passed down from management without staff input, he said.

"My goal is to not make more than three decisions in a year," Lesher said. "It's an effective way to more consciously make the decisions I have to make."

Messiah Lifeways' decentralized decisions happen within rules due to medical and legal constraints because its services include resident health care, he said. Employees must follow human resources policy, all regulations, and must have the same mission and vision, he said.

"We've been very clear about the realms where people can do what they want and those realms where they can't," Lesher said.

Messiah Lifeways' changeover began five years ago, he said. Leadership wanted it to be a person-centered and community-minded culture. In researching how to approach that, Lesher said he learned about WorldBlu, an organization that's been promoting democratic workplaces for 15 years.

"Many principles of person-centered culture are similar to democratic workplaces," he said.

Messiah Lifeways' management decided to use WorldBlu's 10 principles of democratic organization as a guideline for its changes, but eventually it sought certification as a democratic workplace. Messiah Village, which changed its name to Messiah Lifeways this month, was named to WorldBlu's list of the Most Democratic Workplaces in 2010 and 2011. It shares the honor with well-known names, including lubricant manufacturer WD-40 Co., online coupon company Groupon and Internet TV pioneer Hulu.

"By giving up power or sharing power, people find that they gain more influence," said Traci Fenton, WorldBlu's founder and CEO.

Fenton started WorldBlu in 1997 after a bad work experience left her feeling her opinions, expertise and intelligence were less important than being a cog in the machine, she said. Today, WorldBlu certifies democratic workplaces in more than 60 countries. Its certified companies have annual revenue of $15 billion and employ more than 220,000 people, according to WorldBlu.

Workplace democracy is about removing fear as a motivational factor for decisions, Fenton said. Democratic firms use respect, communication, decentralized decision-making and equality to drive business, she said.

"A janitor is equal to the CEO," she said. "Their roles might be different, and how they bring value to the organization is different, but their ideas are just as important."

People have been studying better workplace designs for more than 50 years with the goal of increasing economic output through a happier, engaged workforce, said Eric Darr, Harrisburg University of Science and Technology's provost and executive vice president. Darr also holds a doctorate of philosophy in organizational behavior and theory.

Autonomy can be beneficial to a company but it needs common goals, he said. Without those, people make decisions based on what's good for them, competing with an organization's mission, he said. People aren't trying to take advantage or hurt the company, but they might not immediately see the effect of their decisions, he said.

Still, the best companies empower employees on some level, Darr said.

"That's the key," he said. "Give people some autonomy. No one likes to feel like they're controlled all the time."