Over the last five years, Vancouver has experienced a 42.6% increase in total tech occupations — even becoming the city with the fastest high-tech job growth in North America1 — and houses nearly 100,000 skilled workers and permanent residents2 within the British Columbia (BC) area.
The city’s forward-thinking culture, natural surroundings, and diverse community leave no shortage of opportunities — its tremendous growth in tech has earned it the nickname, “Techcouver.” By 2027, this market is expected to add 83,400 new tech-related job openings.3
General Assembly is proud to announce our arrival and help cultivate thousands of meaningful connections through thoughtful partnership building and learning opportunities. Join us for expert-led classes, workshops, and inspirational panel discussions each week.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: construction, film and television, high technology, manufacturing, and tourism.4
Major employers: Amazon, TELUS, Best Buy, BC Public Service, Fraser Health Authority, Interior Health Authority, University of British Columbia (UBC), and the City of Vancouver.5
The city also hosts growing sectors, including AI, Software as a Service (SaaS), business intelligence, cybersecurity, and FinTech.7
The Vancouver Tech Community
The tech industry in BC employs around 100,000 people with 75,000 working in the Vancouver metro.8
With a lower cost of living than other major cities, it’s a compelling environment to launch a business and attract top global talent. They introduced the Global Skills Strategy which offers highly-skilled employees work permit exemptions and faster application processing times.
Vancouver Startup Week is a week-long event where entrepreneurs, investors, and community leaders connect and celebrate the city’s startup community.
Go-to startup hub, Startup Vancouver, serves tech and non-tech entrepreneurs with resources for every stage of their business.
Calgary has been reinvented from the ‘energy capital of Canada’ into an innovative and thriving center of digital transformation. Quickly becoming the largest driver of new solutions within the tech sector, Calgary is embracing opportunities that make a difference.
In a recent report, tech companies in the area have more than doubled in the past three years alone — and despite economic impact due from the pandemic, 14% of those new tech companies launched in 2020. Additionally, 40% of businesses are reporting annual revenues of over $1 million,1 showcasing the power of Calgary’s energetic ideas and transformative solutions.
Calgary is diverse in culture. More than 29% of the population immigrated from elsewhere, representing 240 different ethnic origins.2 The numbers will only go higher thanks to an investment of $18.4 billion in digital transformation — 77,000 tech jobs will be added across Alberta in the next few years. In fact, Calgary is expected to have a tech boom with the number of companies at least doubling by 2030.3
General Assembly is proud to announce our arrival and help cultivate thousands of meaningful connections through thoughtful partnership building and learning opportunities. Join us for expert-led classes, workshops, and inspirational panel discussions each week.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: agribusiness, creative industries, energy & environment, financial services, healthcare, and technology.4
Major employers: University of Calgary, Alberta Health Services, Shaw Communications, Suncor Energy, Inc., and Imperial Oil Limited.5
The Calgary Tech Community
Alberta has a higher percentage of women tech company founders than the global average (27%), compared with 20% globally.6 Organizations such as The Chic Geek, Making Changes, and SheInnovates, Alberta design programs and provide resources to accelerate the careers of women entrepreneurs and innovators.
There are local organizations in Calgary founded to support its growing tech community, where you can discover opportunities to network and learn:
Startup Calgary serves early stage entrepreneurs and strengthens the city’s innovation ecosystem through networking, partnerships, and programming.
Pixels and Pints connects web developers and digital designers through monthly meet-ups.
Assembly Coworking Space offers affordable spaces for tech startups and social enterprises. They also host events in their common areas to connect and learn from fellow entrepreneurs.
“Attitude will get you the job, but skills evolve the job — a perfect metaphor for what GA does… we bring the essential skills.”
— Roger Lee, CMO of General Assembly
First, let’s talk numbers.
Ten years ago, we began our journey in one tiny NYC working space with less than a handful of founders and leaders and one BIG idea — we wanted to offer people the necessary skills to prepare them for the future of work. Ultimately, we wanted to transform lives.
Fast-forward to today.
Our BIG idea is still the same, but now we’re a pioneering global leader — with a seat at the head of the table. Sometimes, we can’t quite believe it ourselves, but we’ve done our due diligence and will continue to. And we will continue to lead.
Looking back to look ahead.
As we have reiterated throughout our history, we could never be in the place we are without the feedback of our global community of instructors, industry leaders, students, business partners, and, yes, competitors. We will maintain our position in the space and keep evolving with the guidance of our multifaceted senior leadership team — a mixture of new yet seasoned executives and GA veterans. This formidable group believes in our mission of innovation, global expansion — SLT members are located in Boston, Mexico City, Miami, New York City, Paris, San Diego, San Francisco, and Zurich — and the endless possibilities of the future.
We meet people where they are — with the right people.
GA’s SLT has grown and evolved in response to growing employer demands and the aspirations of worldwide professionals. They bring a collective 200 years of education experience and a range of perspectives and insights that span the globe across multiple generations, cultures, and sectors. This group acts, thinks, and dreams big — global-scale big — in order to meet the industry’s shifting demands.
Meet the Team
Without further ado, we’d like to introduce some of GA’s newest movers and shakers on our senior leadership team and encourage you to explore some of their driving insights:
Shweta Bhasin, SVP of Human Resources
Shweta brings 20 years of experience in HR consulting and corporate HR roles across the telecom, professional services, and education industries. She joins us from Pearson, where she was part of the Global HR Leadership team.
Quote To Note: “The strong attraction for me was GA’s mission — feeling the employability skills gap and transforming lives through education. This is a powerful and purposeful mission — so, being part of this journey, with new, more global markets, brought me here…”
Ella Balagula, SVP & Global Head of Enterprise
Ella brings 25 years of general management, digital transformation, and EdTech growth experience. Most recently, she was EVP and GM of knowledge and learning at Wiley, managing a portfolio of education businesses.
Quote To Note:“This is a dream job! I believe that in today’s world, corporations and governments have both a responsibility and an acute need to upskill employees and communities and take charge of preparing people to face the future.”
Alberto Cavero, SVP of Strategy & Transformation
Alberto joins us from Laureate Education, where he served as the chief transformation officer and formerly as the strategy director. Previously, he worked on strategic consulting at Boston Consulting Group.
Quote To Note: “GA is a great success story, has great talented people, but mostly, it has huge potential — that’s what I really like about this opportunity. I can encourage bottom-up innovation and transformation to achieve our goals.”
Danielle Chircop, SVP & Global Head of Product
Danielle joins us with 16 years of experience in adult education and over a decade of leadership in instructional design, product, and technology. Most recently, she was VP of digital products at Kaplan North America.
Quote To Note:“Being able to be a huge part of the next wave of innovation at GA and bring it to its next big phase of life is something that’s so incredibly exciting… helping people change their lives and change their careers is hugely important.”
Roger Lee, SVP of Marketing & Admissions
Roger brings 25 years of marketing experience, most recently as VP of performance marketing at the University of Phoenix.
Quote To Note: “Everyone here must find qualified hand-raisers, scale the number of them, personalize their journey, and give compelling reasons to help meet their career goals. We have one goal, and that goal is to help everyone interested understand that GA does it better than anyone else.”
Jason Fournier, VP of Product Management
Jason spent 15 years at Pearson, most recently as VP of product management and AI products and solutions.
Quote To Note: “I’ve spent my entire career in education because I believe that it can have an exponential impact. What I found compelling about General Assembly is that we aren’t just helping people find jobs; we’re helping them build careers, gain confidence in themselves, and change the trajectory of their lives.”
David Porcaro, Ph.D., VP of Learning & Innovation
David most recently served as director of learning engineering at the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative.
Quote To Note:“I came to GA because I’m passionate about providing access to the tech field to diverse learners on a global scale. My job as a leader is to help surface the principles, examples, evidence, concepts, and tools that have effectively got people in similar contexts to their goals.”
These impressive individuals will join our existing team of seasoned leaders, including Catie Brand, VP of human resources; Philipp Lustenberger, SVP of finance; Jayshree Mahtani, general counsel; Tom Ogletree, VP of social impact and external affairs; and Scott Zaloom, SVP of campus operations.
With new and veteran insights governing the entirety of our business, we are equipped to take on the now, the new, and the next levels of our journey with a balanced collective of game-changing executives who will be led by CEO Lisa Lewin, recently hired in 2020. Although our leaders’ 200 years of combined educational experience is quite substantial, their insatiable curiosity and quest for better is infinite. And we’re just getting started.
“These hires reflect a commitment to innovation, in response to accelerated demand for upskilling + reskilling at scale. They’ll leverage remote learning best practices that we honed during the pandemic to reach new global audiences and geographies.”
As we resume offering in-person learning in the U.S., we’re ensuring that students are set up for success in a safe learning environment. Below is everything you need to know about our policy, including answers to questions you might have. For individuals who will not be enrolled in a full-time immersive or part-time course when they visit, please scroll down to the section titled For Class and Workshop Attendees and Other Visitors.
For Full-Time and Part-Time Students
Vaccinations
All enrolled GA students in the US must be fully vaccinated prior to starting their in-person program.The CDC defines fully vaccinated as when you received all doses in the primary series.
3-8 weeks after an individual’s second dose in a 2-dose primary series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or Novavax.
2 weeks after a single-dose vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine.
Students will have to declare their vaccination status during the admissions process and will be required to show proof of vaccination on or before their first day of class. We will not be saving any vaccination records.
Mask Requirements
Regardless of the latest CDC announcement or other national and/or local health authority guidance regarding masks, we will be requiring all students to wear a mask in the classroom only and optional to wear masks in the common areas. Although we made these changes, we want to strongly encourage our GA community to continue wearing masks throughout campus.
Students may remove their masks if they are actively eating or drinking.
All students will also be required to follow any building-specific public safety guidelines as outlined by each campus’s property management company. Students must adhere to any mask policies set forth by the building for public areas, such as elevators, building lobbies, public restrooms, parking garages, bike storage facilities, communal workspaces, public cafeterias, snack bars, or restaurants, etc.
Please note: At this time, wearing masks is suggested but optional for in-person learning on our NYC campus.
Check-in Procedure
All students will need to be registered ahead of time and submit a health declaration form using the Envoy workplace management platform prior to entering campus.
This form will attest that each individual is not exhibiting any COVID-related symptoms, and that they have not tested positive for COVID themselves. This questionnaire will need to be submitted prior to visiting campus each time via an app or when arriving at campus via a QR code displayed on a tablet at the campus entrance.
After their initial registration on Envoy, all entrants to the space (staff, instructors, students, and visitors) will be required to sign-in and out using the Envoy workplace management platform and submit the health questionnaire each time they plan to come to campus. Individuals can do so via an app or by using the tablet at the campus entrance.
If on any given day an individual experiences a change to their health and/or answers “yes” to any of the COVID-related questions on the health questionnaire, they will be asked to stay home, inform their Student Success Specialist, and consult a medical professional.
Social Distancing
Students may adhere to social distancing guidelines as mentioned by the CDC website while on a GA campus.
Exposure Management Guidelines
Please stay home and contact your Campus Manager and Student Success team if:
You have tested positive for COVID-19.
You are exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms
If you come to campus and are experiencing symptoms consistent with COVID-19 you will be asked to go home. Please reference the most up to date COVID-19 information on the CDC website. You are encouraged to contact your medical provider if you have any medical related questions or concerns regarding exposure or are exhibiting symptoms.
If a staff member, student or visitor tests positive for COVID-19, we will inform fellow employees, students and visitors to campus. We will maintain confidentiality as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Those who have symptoms should self-isolate and follow CDC recommended steps.
Student Enrollment and Withdrawal Policy
Students will not be permitted to switch their enrollment between in-person and online learning once the program has started. Any requests to change delivery format will follow our standard withdrawal and refund policy as outlined in the Student’s Enrollment Agreement and Student Course Catalog.
For Class and Workshop Attendees and Other Visitors
Vaccinations
Full vaccination is a requirement for anyone who visits a GA campus. Campus visitors will be required to show proof of vaccination or complete a self-attestation through Envoy depending on state and local guidelines. We will not be saving or storing proof of vaccination.
Check In Procedures with Envoy
All campus visitors will be asked to submit a health declaration form using the Envoy workplace management platform on campus.
This form will attest that each individual is not exhibiting any COVID-related symptoms; and that they have not tested positive for COVID themselves. This questionnaire will need to be submitted prior to visiting campus each time via an app or when arriving at campus via a QR code displayed on a tablet at the campus entrance.
After their initial registration on Envoy, all entrants to the space will be required to sign-in and out using the Envoy workplace management platform and submit the health questionnaire each time they plan to come to campus. Individuals can do so via an app or by using the tablet at the campus entrance.
If on any given day an individual experiences a change to their health and/or answers “yes” to any of the COVID-related questions on the health questionnaire, they will be asked to stay home, inform their manager, and consult a medical professional.
In advance of their appointment, they must register and submit a health declaration form using the Envoy workplace management platform prior to entering campus.
Visitors will be required to use our Envoy platform to sign in on prior to entering campus.
Mask Protocols
Regardless of the latest CDC announcement or other national and/or local health authority guidance regarding masks or face coverings, we will be requiring all visitors to wear a mask while entering or walking around campus.
All visitors will also be required to follow any building-specific public safety guidance as outlined by each campus’s property management company. Visitors must adhere to any mask policies set forth by the building for public areas, such as elevators, building lobbies, public restrooms, parking garages, bike storage facilities, communal workspaces, public cafeterias, snack bars, or restaurants, etc.
Social Distancing
All visitors may adhere to social distancing guidelines as stated on the CDC website while on a GA campus.
Visitor Policy
All visitors to a GA campus will need to be registered on the Envoy platform ahead of time and submit a health declaration on entering campus. This form will attest that each individual is:
Not exhibiting any COVID-related symptoms.
Has not tested positive for COVID themselves.
Subsequent visits to campus: After the initial visit and submission of the health declaration form, all entrants to the space will be required to sign in and out using the Envoy workplace management platform each time they plan to come to campus. By signing in each day, individuals are declaring that there has been no change to their health since the initial submission of the form. Individuals can sign in and out with the app or tablet at the campus entrance.
Visitors may be required to submit a release and waiver prior to entering campus.
Other Precautions
Signage: All campuses will display COVID-19 and social distancing-related signage throughout the space in compliance with requirements of our parent company, The Adecco Group, and our global campus operations.
Safety Supplies: All campuses will be required to have virus protection and general health safety supplies installed and available. These supplies include: disposable face masks, disposable Nitrile gloves, hand sanitizer, temperature kits, and disinfectant wipes.
Cleaning: All campuses will ensure that a thorough cleaning of all spaces occurs at least once a day and/or in between use cases. A thorough cleaning will consist of wiping down all desks and surfaces with a COVID-effective disinfectant, in addition to daily janitorial services. Disinfectant wipes will also be provided for staff, students, and instructors to clean their workspaces, any communal spaces used (i.e. kitchen table), and their personal belongings.
FAQ’s
Will GA staff be vaccinated?
We take the rules seriously. Employee vaccination status is protected medical information that cannot be disclosed by employers, so we are unable to publicize the vaccination status of a GA employee.
What if I’m not feeling well or am exhibiting COVID symptoms or have been exposed to COVID?
Safety first — everything else can follow. The GA Student Success team will work with students to ensure they can make up for missed lessons and know how it will impact their absence record. You should inform your Student Success Specialist immediately and stay home if you either:
Are exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms.
Have been advised by a health professional to quarantine or isolate.
Can I access campus if I’m not enrolled in a course or scheduled to attend an event?
Visitors will be permitted on campus only for the duration of their meeting, event or workshop after submitting their Covid- 19 questionnaire using Envoy.
If I’m enrolled in a remote program, will I be required to attend campus at some point?
Students enrolled in a remote program will have access to the GA campus at any point during enrollment period.
Will GA offer hybrid learning options?
Right now, we’re focused on reopening our campuses to safely offer in-person learning experiences. However, our team is currently researching the best ways to launch a hybrid modality for our courses while considering safety and health protocol.
The Dallas-Fort Worth area (DFW) has remained a constant game-changer when it comes to innovation and technology.1 It’s prime real estate for tech talent, with multiple Fortune 1000 companies calling this area home and one of the fastest job-growth rates among major cities. Between the attractive salary potential, budding entrepreneurial scene2, inexpensive real-estate, no state or local income tax, and central geographical location, there are many reasons why the DFW area led the nation in metropolitan population growth in 2020.
Community is at the center of everything we do, which is why GA Dallas fosters an ecosystem of individuals seeking to transform their careers with expert-led classes and workshops each week. Since opening our doors in 2019, we’ve already attracted more than 19 active hiring partners, ranging from Dallas-raised brands to international corporations.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: defense3, financial services, technology, energy4, manufacturing, as well as aviation & aerospace.
Major employers5: Walmart, American Airlines, JPMorgan Chase, Southwest Airlines, Target Co., Raytheon, IBM, Mary Kay, and Neiman Marcus.
Large enterprises like Verizon, Wells Fargo, NTT Data, and Lockheed Martin are increasing their IT hiring efforts in DFW.6
Adding over 110,000 jobs in March and a potential increase in job growth, Dallas proves to be promising as it bounces back from the pandemic.7
Dallas’s annual weeklong Startup Week is the largest free conference in North Texas and demonstrates the community’s enthusiasm for tech growth and innovation.
Stay In the Know
Here are just a handful of resources to help you to dive deeper into Dallas tech:
Stay up to date with the Dallas startup scene with the Startup Digest Dallas insider newsletter.
The Dallas Regional Chamber provides an in-depth logistical view of DFW, the latest in talent attraction, startups and founders to connect with, and economic development news.
Stay apprised. Check out Dallas Innovates for the latest moves within the tech industry, including acquisitions, social impact, new weekly patents & grants filed in Dallas, as well as university collaborations.
With a robust population of 5.8 million people1, Philadelphia (or Philly) boasts a rich and diverse culture founded on hard work and innovation. The growing pool of highly skilled tech talent in the area is a testament to why it’s becoming one of the most promising tech hubs in the country. It’s also home to the nation’s 7th largest workforce (3.4 million) and the top U.S. business school.2
Ranking third in the nation for best cities for women in the tech sector based on the gender pay gap,3 Philadelphians are reshaping the future of work into a more equitable playing field for all. The opportunity for non-technical advancement is also growing at a rapid pace for the emerging tech talent pipeline4 — not to mention the other Pennsylvania cities with growing tech communities, such as Harrisburg, Lancaster, and Pittsburgh.
With its neighborly feel, a deeply connected community is a signature feature of Philadelphia — one that is instrumental to the city’s history as well as its future. GA Philly plans to cultivate thousands of meaningful connections through thoughtful partnership building and learning opportunities by facilitating expert-led classes and workshops and intentional panel discussions each week.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: life sciences, information technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, energy, financial and professional services, logistics, and manufacturing.5
Major employers:6 Comcast, Day & Zimmerman, Clarivate, Spectra, Health-Union, Sidecar Interactive, Spark Therapeutics, Meet Group, Vici Media, and Phenom People.7
Philadelphia is considered the leader in healthcare innovation with increased investment in biotech.8 The Greater Philadelphia region is home to more than 30 cell and gene therapy development companies,9 as well as the CAR T-cell cancer treatment therapy — developed in a collaboration by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine.10
The recent surge in job postings suggests that exciting possibilities are on the horizon. With a lower cost of living than other major cities, it’s a compelling environment to launch a business and attract new talent.12
The Philadelphia Tech Community
With 5,100 tech businesses,13 organizations like Philly Startup Leaders are creating space for startups to connect with leaders in the community.14
From a women-focused non-profit to a community-led talent marketplace, there are local organizations where you can find resources to start a business, offer your support, or connect with like-minded entrepreneurs.
Want to help diversify the tech talent pipeline? Philly Tech Sistas is a non-profit organization that helps women of color gain technical and professional skills in order to work, thrive, and level up in the tech industry.
Require assistance to build a product or enhance your business? Think Company has a team full of experts in design, developing, and coaching (featuring some of our very own GA alumni!).
Need a diverse and supportive community of fellow tech enthusiasts? Tribaja is not only community-led but offers tons of resources for your next career move.
Having the lowest office rental rates among top metros, Philly is home to some of the most elite co-working spaces such as 1776, CIC Philadelphia, Industrious, and City CoHo — all great places to check out for networking or collaborating with entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and creatives.
Stay in the Know
Here are just a handful of resources to help you dive deeper into Philadelphia’s tech and startup ecosystem:
Subscribe to Billy Penn, one of Philly’s media channels for local news and announcements, or Technical.ly Philly for daily updates on navigating Philly’s local economy.
Small Biz Philly covers everything related to launching and growing small businesses.
Check out Philly Mag to stay in the loop on the latest industry trends, events, and upcoming business ventures in the area.
Miles of white-sand beaches, perfect weather, and a red-hot tech scene — welcome to the modern San Diego. With its charming neighborhoods and diverse community, San Diego has been revered as “America’s Finest City.” But in recent years, it’s also quickly gained a reputation as a hotspot for startups and tech jobs, which accounts for almost 9% of total employment. A high concentration of millennials in the area — a characteristic of vibrant tech ecosystems — is only one force bringing San Diego into the future of work. A recent report found that millennials account for 24% of the region’s population and more than half of the population is younger than 39 years old.
Successful tech companies such as Qualcomm, LunaDNA, and Aira share a common mission — to make the world a better place through innovation and community. With startup gateways such as Fresh Brewed Tech, Startup San Diego, and General Assembly, it is no doubt you’ll find support and opportunities to collaborate in San Diego.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: defense/military, tourism, international trade, and research/manufacturing.
Major employers: Naval Base San Diego, University of California San Diego (UCSD), San Diego County, Sharp HealthCare, Cubic Corporation, and Pulse Electronics.
San Diego ranks ninth in the nation for tech jobs.
The San Diego Tech Community
The emergence of organizations supporting entrepreneurs is another reason why the city is on track to becoming the next tech hub:
Startup San Diego is a nonprofit organization that upskills, guides, and connects the local community with the right resources to create an equitable startup ecosystem and community.
Connect San Diego provides entrepreneurs access to investors, mentors, and education.
LatinaGeeks empowers and inspires Latinas by sharing technical knowledge, business skills, and entrepreneurship resources.
Athena is a premier women’s advocacy organization that fast tracks women in STEM through leadership development.
Hera Hub is a women-focused coworking space and business accelerator.
The San Diego tech community also hosts dynamic networking events — the largest beingMarch Mingle — to celebrate the latest technologies and startups of the area. Startup San Diego also organizes annual events, such as San Diego Startup Week Month and Convergence, packed with panel discussions, hands-on workshops, and pitch competitions.
Stay in the Know
If you’re new to the community, this guide by the San Diego startup community will come in handy when navigating the local tech scene. We’ve also listed additional resources to help you keep up with the latest San Diego tech news and events:
For entrepreneurs and small business owners, join some (or all!) of these local groups to meet like-minded individuals and grow your network.
Subscribe to Fresh Brewed Tech to stay up to date on San Diego’s tech scene.
Get inspired and listen to Tacos and Tech podcast as they highlight founders, technologies, and the ecosystem of San Diego.
Nestled comfortably in the northern Midwest, Minneapolis and St. Paul — or the Twin Cities — are known for their abundant lakes, expansive parks, and snowy winters. The metro area is home to more than a dozen established Fortune 500 companies, as well as a bustling startup community. From its iconic hospitality to diverse career prospects, the Twin Cities is more than flyover country. Twin Cities Startup Week — with its innovative fly-in program — is proof that it’s a great place to grow a startup and your professional network. According to CNBC, it’s also the best city for women entrepreneurs, having nearly 20% of businesses owned by women and a high early startup success rate of over 80%.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: healthcare, medical tech, finance, manufacturing, food and agriculture, and more.
Major employers: UnitedHealth Group, Target Corporation, Best Buy, 3M, US Bank, and General Mills.
Between 2016 and 2017, there was a 40% increase in startup investments. There’s also an emergence of startup accelerators such as TechStars and gener8tor.
The Twin Cities Tech Community
The tech community is thriving — organizations like Minnestar make it easy for founders, mentors, volunteers, and employees to connect.
They also host dynamic tech and startup events such as Twin Cities Startup Week — an annual conference with over 200+ events and 15,000+ attendees — and MinneDemo, a showcase of Minnesota-made tech products.
Stay in the Know
Here are just a handful of resources to help you dive deeper into Twin Cities tech:
Salt Lake City has long been a haven for skiers chasing the “best snow on Earth” and adventurers exploring Utah’s many national parks. However, Salt Lake City has recently garnered new attention as a booming tech ecosystem. Multiple high-profile companies — like Adobe and eBay — have opened campuses in the area, while home-grown companies like Qualtrics, Domo, Instructure, Pluralsight, and Lucid have achieved significant success. This tremendous growth across the tech landscape has earned the city the nickname, “Silicon Slopes.” Overall, the tech sector is growing at a tremendous rate in both Utah and Salt Lake City. According to a Gardner report, tech jobs in Utah are growing at twice the rate of the national average, with one in seven jobs based in tech and innovation. In Salt Lake City specifically, tech jobs have grown by 12% since January 20181.
What makes Salt Lake City so attractive for tech companies? For starters, Salt Lake City is a young, highly-educated city, with a median population age of 31.7 years2. The city also boasts the country’s newest international airport, providing easy access for business and personal trips. From a cultural perspective, Utah prides itself on being the Beehive State, reflecting the area’s values of industry, community, and collaboration. This is evident in local organizations like Silicon Slopes — a nonprofit that fosters the startup and tech community through education and events, including the annual Silicon Slopes Summit that hosts more than 15,000 attendees. All of this has resulted in a massive influx of diverse talent to Salt Lake City, particularly in 2020 — LinkedIn’s data showed that Salt Lake City had the second highest gains in net arrivals of any city in the U.S.
Companies and Jobs
Top industries: education, healthcare, and retail.3
Major employers: Wal-Mart, The University of Utah, the state of Utah, Intermountain Health Care, and the U.S. government.4
Utah leads the nation in industry growth in life sciences and recently introduced BioHive, a “healthcare corridor designed to nurture this cutting-edge industry.”5
Salt Lake City’s unemployment rate remains well below the national average at 3.7% in 2020, compared to 6.7% nationally.6
Salt Lake City boasts several incredible creative working spaces, including INDUSTRY SLC, Maven Create, and Kiln, where you can meet and collaborate with like-minded entrepreneurs.
1 Million Cups is hosting virtual weekly events so you can network and pitch your startups to your peers.
As General Assembly embarks on a new chapter within a new world, we’ve turned to Lisa Lewin for CEO leadership at this shifted moment — and we couldn’t be more thrilled.
On her first day as CEO at General Assembly, Lisa Lewin sat down with Co-Founder and outgoing GA CEO Jake Schwartz to share more about her journey and passion for education in a Zoom fireside chat with our global GA team.
An Excerpt From Their Conversation:
Jake: Tell us more about your background!
Lisa: I have spent the better part of my career in education, art, science, and the business of education. I have always been deeply dedicated to impact — that’s the thing that ties everything together in my career. I’m a believer that the way to be happy in this life is to try to help others flourish, and I think education is a place to do that. I have spent time at big companies like McGraw Hill and Pearson, and I also built my own tech company that created curriculums for post-secondary institutions.
Jake: How did you end up at GA? What was your first introduction to GA?
Lisa: GA is kind of sprinkled throughout my career and has inserted itself into my life in random ways over the past few years. And I’ll just give a couple of examples. When I launched my own tech company, I was the first employee, so I literally had to build everything, including doing the code myself on our first products. I needed to learn and refine my skills in product development and design and took a GA course to do just that. It was an incredible experience, and so I became a fan way back then in the early days of GA.
Then, at Pearson, I ran the global technology and product team with over 1,000 people across every continent. I always had great faith if I was sending one of my staff to GA — engineers, UX experts, data scientists — that they were going to come back with immediately applicable skills. If you’re going to invest like that, you’ve got to believe there’s an ROI, and there was always an ROI when I would send people to GA.
And then lastly, just this year, I needed something fixed so I called a handyman I used to call all the time for help. I sent him a text, and he was like, “Actually, I don’t do that anymore.” He went on to explain how he had launched an entirely new, amazing career in web development by getting a certificate at a place called GA. So as someone who has dedicated her career to education and deeply believes in impact, that is a long-winded way of saying I’m super excited to be here and have been a fan for a very long time.
Jake: One question we always ask our employees when they join the company at our “team lunch” gatherings, is who was your favorite teacher you ever had, and why?
Lisa: My mother was a teacher who actually taught me how to read at home. And that was marvelous. She’s definitely the teacher that has had the biggest influence on my life. Outside of her, it’s a tie between my music teacher and history teacher. The music teacher, because he created the model that I hope I use now, which is giving feedback with kindness, understanding how to help people get better, and giving critical feedback in a humane way. And then, the history teacher helped form my brain’s ability to recognize patterns. History is about pattern recognition. How do you balance between applying what you know to be true and successful, while also staying open to new input, new information, and being agile?
Jake: I don’t know how many CEO transitions have happened during a worldwide pandemic. At GA, we’ve had quite a journey converting everything from offline to online in a matter of days. It’s such a unique moment, and I’d love to hear some of your thoughts on the opportunity for GA, and how we think about our role at this moment where everything seems in flux.
Lisa: There is a genuine, legitimate need for what we’re doing right now. Yet, there are businesses out there trying to figure out what to push into the universe. I don’t want to be in that kind of business in a world where there is no shortage of needs. Why bother producing things where you have to invent or create demand?
In a world where there is no shortage of needs, particularly for people who are trying to get a rung on the economic ladder, for people who recently lost their employment or are in industries that have completely collapsed, our core mission to help people find meaningful work is legitimately useful and in need right now.
I also want to say one other thing about this moment, and about business in general. I just don’t see the point in coming to work and ignoring that the world is on fire. I’ve got to believe I’m not the only person in the universe who wakes up in the morning and starts “doom-scrolling” through the news. There’s no point (in) trying to shut that off for the workday. What I say all the time is that business leaders have a choice in “a world on fire”: we have a choice to be arsonists, bystanders or firefighters, and only one of those is the right choice. Businesses won’t solve all the universe’s problems, but we need to acknowledge that we are in a moment where the communities and customers we serve are experiencing a public health crisis, layered on top of a climate crisis, layered on top of inequitable distribution of wealth and opportunity. We need to ask ourselves how we can be thoughtfully and strategically helpful.
We need to ask ourselves how we can ensure that the world is getting better as we get bigger and better. That’s a healthy question all businesses should be asking right now.
