SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Edmunds.com announced last week it is adding 100 new employees. Company officials said the hiring spree is reflective of the industry’s record new-car sales pace.

About 80 of the 100 job openings at Edmunds are within its “Tier 3” dealer sales department, which has doubled its network of dealer partners over the last three years. Today, Edmunds works with 13,000 new and used dealer partners in the United States, accounting for more than 3.5 million new- and used-car listings on Edmunds.com.

"This year is shaping up to be Edmunds' most successful year yet, and as a profitable, family-owned company, we're exceptionally proud of how far we've come to establish ourselves as the indispensable resource for both car buyers and sellers," said Edmunds.com CEO Avi Steinlauf. "But we know that there's a lot more work to do. That's why we're doubling down on our efforts to bring Edmunds' products and services to more shoppers and dealers so that we can deliver even more simplicity to the car shopping experience."

Automakers have combined to sell 14.5 million new vehicles in the United States in the first 10 months of 2015. At this rate, this year's auto sales will likely eclipse the record of 17.35 million new vehicles sold in 2000. The pace far exceeds analyst expectations at the beginning of the year, and Edmunds' industry experts expect the momentum to continue well into 2016.

Established in 1966, Edmunds is credited as the pioneer in the online car-shopping space when it first brought its pricing guide to the web in 1995. Today, nearly 20 million car shoppers use Edmunds' site and mobile apps each month to make car-buying decisions. The firm is also recognized for its unique and innovative work culture.

The company operates a "Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE)" that gives employees the freedom to get work done in the hours that best fit their schedule — with no restrictions on time off — as long as they deliver results. In recognition of this progressive office culture, Los Angeles Business Journal has named Edmunds as a "Best Place to Work in Los Angeles" in each of the last six years. And earlier this year, Edmunds was recognized by Fast Company as one of "The World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies of 2015 in Automotive," alongside Tesla, Google and Apple.