GOED 2019 Annual Repor t
Utah Strategic Industry Clusters
Software and Information Technology Utah has been home to strong IT and software companies for more than two decades, and in the last few years “Silicon Slopes” has become a household name. Utah’s Silicon Slopes, a concentrated area of software and IT firms, has garnered national attention from USA Today, CNBC, TechCrunch, Fast Company and other major media outlets. Utah hosts big names such as Facebook, eBay, Adobe, Amazon and Dell EMC, but also holds its own with several homegrown companies that have surpassed billion-dollar valuation. These include Instructure, Pluralsight, Qualtrics and Vivint to name just a few. In addition, high-tech manufacturing in Utah advanced over eight decades to produce the likes of memory chip maker IM Flash and communications systems provider L3 Harris Technologies, the largest tech employer in the state. Amazon ranks Utah as the “Most Entrepreneurial State.” The atmosphere and collaborative spirit in Utah helps entrepreneurs start companies and scale them for growth. There is no question that Utah is poised for a continually strong tech industry.
Initiatives Researchers at the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute conducted a two-year research endeavor to measure growth and change within the tech industry. In their report, they provided statewide employment and earnings data, economic impact results, historical trends, local detail and state comparisons for the tech industry. A Tech Industry Advisory Council, which included three of Utah’s trade associations— Silicon Slopes, the Utah Technology Council, and the Women Tech Council—as well as the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) and Economic Development Corporation of Utah (EDCUtah), contributed to this research by providing data, sharing expertise and reviewing results.
Outcomes Since 2008, employment in Utah’s tech industry has grown at a rate of 4.9% per year, more than double the growth rate in other Utah industries and more than triple the growth rate in the U.S. tech industry. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2016 the state had the greatest percentage of tech job growth in the nation at 7.69%. Utah easily outpaces national statistics, representing around 118,600 jobs at more than 6,711 tech companies with an additional 50,100 workers employed in tech-related industries in the state of Utah, such as aerospace, defense and life sciences. The average annual compensation within the tech industry was $106,100, which is over 80% higher than the average compensation of $58,500 in other industries.
Contact Chanel Flores | Software and
Information Technology Cluster Director
801-200-7432 | cflores@utah.gov
Utah’s economy continues to rank among the strongest in the nation with unemployment near record lows across all strategic clusters. Over the next five years, the greatest labor force needs are likely to be software application developers, computer and information systems managers, computer user support specialists and systems software developers. All of these occupations are forecast to grow more than 4% annually between 2014 and 2024, with the need for application developers expected to grow by 6% a year.
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