Silicon Slopes Tech Summit 2019 and the Iconic Peery Hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah
On January 31 to February 1, 2019, I had the opportunity to attend the Silicon Slopes Tech Summit at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, UT with the rest of my cohort at the University of Utah Professional Education Web Development Certificate Program powered by DevPoint Labs. I won the Opportunity in Tech scholarship and moved from Houston, TX to Salt Lake City, UT for the 12-week program. Thankfully, the school offered free housing for out of state students, making my entry into the program seamless. My cohort and I had graduated the day before Silicon Slopes, and the event was the perfect way to wrap up an intensive software engineering immersive program. We all had the opportunity to participate firsthand in Utah’s thriving tech ecosystem while networking with the various companies being represented at Silicon Slopes. This year, 24,000 attendees registered for the event, and the year before attracted 15,000. Utah is a state that is pushing to make itself a leader in technology. Both the government and private sector are working hard in cooperation to make that a reality. There were many speakers who delivered thought-provoking talks about their role in the tech sphere. Highlighting the public-private partnership to cultivate a thriving tech economy in Utah, during one of the speaking events on Thursday, January 31, Pluralsight CEO Aaron Skonnard, Gov. Gary Herbert and Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox spoke about the need to address Utah’s underperformance in public school computer science offerings. In response, several movers and shakers in Utah’s tech arena pledged to match the state government’s funding initiative. Pluralsight co-founder and CEO Aaron Skonnard alongside InsideSales CEO Dave Elkington, DOMO CEO Josh James, Vivint SmartHome CEO Todd Pedersen and Qualtrics CEO Ryan Smith all committed to the pledge.
A common theme observed at the event was the desire of tech leaders to increase diversity and inclusion in their respective companies. On a national scale, the tech sector has largely failed to reflect the diversity of the American population, and there is a lack of minority, women and LGBTQ representation in various tech roles. Although there are efforts to correct this imbalance, there is much more that can be done by removing bias from hiring practices and by giving everyone equal opportunity to thrive, succeed and benefit from the burgeoning tech economy. Utah is not known for its diversity. In response, many Utah-based tech companies hire talent from outside states to make their workplaces better represent the larger American demographic landscape. According to VentureBeat, “There’s also the challenge of trying to convince tech workers looking for a diverse place to live and work that a state that’s 82 percent white fits the bill. Doing more to recruit female and minority tech employees is a priority, especially for the bigger startups.” Most tech leaders and founders realize the business necessity of diversifying their employee and applicant pools since a homogeneous workplace can be detrimental to a business’s bottom line. Not only is it morally correct to cultivate a diverse and inclusive workplace, but data also suggests that it is essential to a business’s profitability and overall success. Smart companies and organizations understand that.
There were many high-profile companies represented at the Silicon Slopes Tech Summit 2019, a reflection of the tremendous opportunity and wealth of high-paying tech positions for potential applicants and attendees.
During the lunch break, I took a walk up the street just a few blocks away from the Salt Palace Pavilion and discovered the famous Peery Hotel. The hotel is an iconic landmark in Salt Lake City and is a relic of the old west. Constructed in 1910, it has been in continuous operation for more than one hundred years. The Peery was built on the site of the earlier Congregation B’Nai Israel. Since my last name is also Peery, I knew that the founders of the Hotel were somehow related to me. I had the opportunity to tour the hotel which was one of the nicest I’ve seen. When I arrived, I went to the reception desk and asked the attendant if I could take a tour. I told him that I am actually a Peery and showed him my Texas driver's license. Making me feel like I owned the place, he responded, “Sure man! You’re a Peery! The place is basically yours.” He mentioned that there were some Peerys who visited a week earlier from out of state and had asked for a tour as well. It is truly a historic landmark with news articles from the 1900s displayed and framed nicely on the walls referencing The Peery’s earlier days. The old west decor was both stylish and classy. Prior to my experience at the University of Utah’s Professional Education Web Development Program, I had never visited any state west of Colorado, but it looks like I have historic roots and a place in Utah after all. I am definitely open to living in and developing my software engineering career in a state with such a thriving tech scene and which has demonstrated a concerted public-private effort to expand it while contemporaneously promoting inclusivity and diversity. Given the wealth of tech jobs available, anyone with the desire, persistence, and preparation to work in the field should have a fair chance at developing their tech career.
