Its penchant for innovation led Marietta-based Employer's Reference Service Inc., a fast-growing job applicant-screening firm, to capture the 1997 "Small Business of the Year" award from the Cobb Chamber of Commerce on Monday.

The awards ceremony was the highlight event at the chamber's monthly "First Monday" breakfast and was meant to be a kickoff for Small Business Month this month. ERS was one of six finalists nominated for the award.

"This was a difficult decision," said Bob Prillaman, chamber chairman and executive vice president of Austell-based Caraustar Industries Inc. "There are so many high quality small businesses in Cob County…it's a special day when you recognize these companies.

U.S. Rep. Newt Gingrich, R-east Cobb, was expected at the breakfast but was a no-shoe, to the disappointment of one chamber spokesperson. "It makes it seem more important when he's there." Said communication director Gay Watson.

Eight-year-old ERS, which is expecting 35 percent growth to about $4 million in sales this year, was held up for its novel business strategies in fields that range from human resource management to software systems to community involvement.

"Our industry is unique. A lot of people think we just place people," said Tammy Choen, ERS's vice president. "The award hopefully will be a good way to identify the industry better."

From headquarters in the Governor's Ridge Office Park on Johnson Ferry Road, a 30 person staff checks the education, employment histories, driving records and criminal pasts of would-be-employees for nearly 2,200 client firms, among them Atlanta Gas Light, Toys 'R' Us, and the media empire Cox Enterprises.

But the business is information technology, not FBI-like snooping or detective work, executives said. While giants like Atlanta-based Equifax are competitors, ERS has been able to carve out a niche thanks to patented software allowing easy management of information.

"We can do it better, faster and less expensively than Equifax," said Blair Cohen, president of ERS. Costs are kept down by fielding some 1,300 independent agents across the United States to track down public information on applicants.

At the same time, the Marietta staff gathers references from former employers. If a prospective employee isn't right for the job, ERS will let a client know so a possible future lawsuit can be avoided.

"Toys 'R' Us would call on us because it would be concerned about hiring a child molester," said Ms. Cohen. "It's sort of an insurance policy."

And ERS can keep applicants honest. To get the highest salary possible from a new employer, applicants often will overstate how much they earned in previous jobs by as much as $10,000, Ms Cohen said.

Few firms its size are more cutting-edge than ERS when it comes to personnel management. There are on-site workout rooms for adults, playrooms for kids and a resource library "full of book on self-improvement," Ms. Cohen said. Each employee who wants is treated to a massage every week and personnel can secure low-interest loans through the company.

"A team environment makes employees work harder and longer," Ms. Cohen said. "And being family-friendly get employees that stay with you for a long time."