Utah Technology Council: Cookies at Wilson Sonsini
Sat, October 14, 2006 at 10:35 AM in Fight Club - CEO Network This week I attended my first Utah Technology Council event. I wasn't sure what to expect, but hey, I'd paid to join so I might as well find out. I also wanted to hear Niclole Toomey Davis (her blog). It wasn't at all what I expected.
It was held at Wilson Sonsini's offices and Mark Bonham was supplying the cookies. (I'd met Mark before at a Funding Universe speed pitching event where we sat at the same table so I don't really know him but I've heard great things.) Mark alluded to the pizza and beer of Silicon Valley which frankly would have been my preference.
Mark Newman, COO of HireVue was also there and from what I could tell, he was co-hosting since he introduced Nicole. Mark and I both graduated from Brighton High School in SL. I found this out while telling Mark about the student team at Brighton (of which I was a member) that flew the first science experiment from a high school on the Space Shuttle. (It was on seed germination in zero gravity.) I made the comment that that would probably be before his time. He informs me that he was born in 1984. Some of these young, wet-behind-the-ears-types don't know when to shut up. Evidently, Hirevue is run by toddlers.
Nicole obviously knows whereof she speaks. She's with Utah's Centers of Excellence COEP now and it seems that part of her responsibilities extend to trying to get science out of Utah's universities and into the market. Her presentation was short and most of the time was spent in something akin to a round table discussion. All of the talk about SBIC's and such was outside of my experience but I found it all very interesting.
There are a number of networking events around that are fairly focused and cater to specific groups. I'll get together a list and post it. If you know or are part of a group, add it to that post and I'll make sure it's included.
Reader Comments (2)
Quality has gone down tremendously over the years though - when I was at Brighton, the only science experiment there was had something to do with the lunch in the cafeteria and paper airplanes. Nothing quite like the shuttle days.
Remember, you asked when I graduated :)
Hope to see you again (I wanted to buy you lunch, maybe I am off the list though)
Mark (the toddler) Newman
You're on the list. Lunch is hight on the priority list. It's not your fault you're not able to shave yet. I'll just have to get used to being the only one in the room who's seen Welcome Back Kotter.