Silicon Slopes | The Entrepreneur Capital of the World

Join Garrett Clark and Clint Betts as they sit down with Ryan Westwood, CEO of Fullest and a public and private company director. Tune in to this episode to learn what it takes to live the true entrepreneur’s lifestyle, the importance of surrounding yourself with an all-star team, and the current venture capital community in Utah. In this episode, Ryan shares his career journey from Simplus to becoming the CEO of Fullcast and also shares important life lessons he has learned by being an entrepreneur in Utah.Ryan Westwood is a tech entrepreneur who has successfully exited three companies. Ryan co-founded Simplus, which he grew from $0 to more than $400 million in revenue when merged with Infosys eco systems businesses. Ryan is currently the CEO of Fullcast and a public & private company director. He authored the book “The Five Characteristics of a Successful Entrepreneur”. He has been both Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and Utah Business CEO of the Year. In 2021 he was named as one of the top CEO’s in America for Women by Comparably.Tune in to learn from a great entrepreneur!

Join Clint Betts and Garrett Clark as they sit down with Jonas Harmer, Head of Business Development at Gigg. In this episode, Jonas talks about his previous cryptocurrency job and the interesting things that happened there. They dive into his role at Gigg, what Gigg does, and a unique campaign their team worked on this year. Show Links:https://www.gigg.comApple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/silicon-slopes-the-entrepreneur-capital-of-the-world/id1698150372Spotify Podcasts - https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZdYnWYKPXOqH2fgJ2UJ2N?si=5890c63a145a4a3eSocial:Twitter - https://twitter.com/siliconslopesInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/siliconslopes/LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/silicon-slopes/YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8aEtQ1KJrWhJ3C2JnzXysw

Join Garrett Clark and Clint Betts as they sit down with Alan Wessman, current candidate for Utah County’s Commission. In this episode, they take a deep dive into Utah County: the exponential growth of Utah County, the challenges of building homes and expanding roads, and the strategies in place to ensure that every new homeowner in Utah Country can not only enjoy shopping, but also Utah’s amazing scenery. Alan Wessman also shares his motivations for running for Utah County’s Commission as well as running using a third party—United Utah Party. Tune in to listen to Alan’s unique perspective on non-partisan politics and DEI in Utah.Alan Wessman is a longtime Utah County resident, a career software engineer, and a former and current candidate for public office with the United Utah Party. As a software engineer, he has worked on problems ranging from online learning, to cloud data sync, to election management software, to machine learning and cybersecurity. He has worked for large corporations and small startups, and has volunteered on some open-source side projects as well. In 2022, feeling the call of public service, he ran for his state House seat in Spanish Fork, getting 20 percent of the vote against the Republican incumbent. In 2024, he is running for an open seat on the Utah County Commission.Tune in to learn more!

Join Clint Betts and Garrett Clark as they sit down with Rasesh Patel, President of Vivint Smart Home at NRG. In this episode, they discuss the future of electric vehicles, smart home technology, current events, and Rasesh’s incredible career journey.Rasesh joined NRG from Vivint, where he was Chief Operating Officer, overseeing the company’s operations as well as its technology and product platform.Prior to Vivint, Rasesh spent seven years at AT&T where he served in various executive leadership roles before being named chief product and platform officer for AT&T business. In that capacity, Rasesh was responsible for a P&L with $35 billion of annual revenue, as well as its integrated platforms, products, and solutions including fiber, 5G, Edge, IoT, cybersecurity, collaboration, and cloud connectivity.Prior to its acquisition by AT&T, Rasesh served as senior vice president of customer experience for DIRECTV. Through his focus on developing a seamless omnichannel customer experience, DIRECTV’s NPS improved from third to first in the industry while simultaneously driving significant operating efficiencies.Rasesh received an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management and a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of California, Irvine.Tune in to learn from a great business leader.

Join Clint Betts and Garrett Clark as they sit down with Mike Taylor, Founder of Guru Technologies, a local contract software engineering company that builds mobile and web apps. In this episode, they discuss national events such as the recent NFL games with the Detroit Lions and San Fransisco 49ers, recap Utah Tech Week and describe the various events that took place, and the impact AI can bring in the near future.Mike Taylor started Guru Technologies in 2005 and currently has 50 Utah-based employees. He and his team have built all kinds of software for startups and companies. Outside of Guru, Mike has also built three SaaS startups, two of which were sold. Mike was the tech co-founder of Tukios in 2010 and Municipal Code Online in 2016. The third startup, CrewTracks, is still being run by Mike.Tune in to learn more.

On this episode of the Silicon Slopes Podcast, Clint meets with Utah State Representative, Jefferson Moss. They dive into various issues affecting Utah and share ideas surrounding DEI in the workplace and in education. As Utah continues to grow, lawmakers are actively seeking solutions to potential problems the state may experience with such large-scale growth, including management and transportation. They also discuss the upcoming presidential election as well as the Utah Innovation Fund which supports Utah's startups and entrepreneurs. The future of Utah is in great hands; tune in to learn more about the exciting things happening in this great state! "I think our new board of higher education, you know many of them, I think it's going to do a fantastic job of helping to bring the schools more together. They all bring incredible strengths individually but to see the collaboration amongst them, I think is going to create a lot of new exciting things that we can do as a state."

On this episode of the Silicon Slopes Podcast, Clint meets with Chad Ingram, the Founder and CEO of Distro. They delve into Chad's entrepreneurial journey including his experiences in establishing and successfully selling a startup, leading to his current role at Distro. Chad has an exhilarating background in racing cars and he talks about the intricate process of getting into this lifestyle, as well as constructing the perfect pit crew team to support him in races. Chad shares his story of founding Distro and how he was inspired to fill a gap in the outsourcing market. They also talk about startups in Utah and highlight what some local leaders are doing to put the state on the map of innovation. "You become dangerous and productive when you don't give a sh**. And that doesn't mean that you become careless. It just means that you become fearless."

On this episode of the Silicon Slopes Podcast, Clint meets with Aaron Starks to talk about building 47G and investing in Utah's ecosystem of aerospace entrepreneurs. 47G, previously known as Utah Aerospace and Defense, funds some of the greatest minds in cyber and defense innovation. They discuss the state of the world, the different powers leading in innovation, as well as what we lack in capable leadership. In the midst of a local political funk, they talk about why some people refuse to run for office and why we're seeing a decline in specific arenas. When small businesses succeed, the entire state succeeds and Aaron strives to help as many as possible thrive today. "Utah has 330,000 small businesses. We're a small to mid-market state. The life blood of our economy is the small businessmen."

Jaquelynne Elliott from J.P. Morgan joins Clint on this episode of the Silicon Slopes Podcast for a conversation about the unprecedented growth of Utah's market and business talent, particularly in the entrepreneurial space. With a background in finance, Jaquelynne recently joined J.P. Morgan and she currently helps founders plan ahead while managing risk. They touch on transferring wealth and being financially prepared for the future. They also discuss the complications of the current economic environment and Jaquelynne shares her perspective on the state of things. Utah's entrepreneurs stand out for their unique commitment to reinvesting in their own state, rather than going elsewhere once they achieve success, further investing in local innovation. "If you want information on anything financial, you can get it, and you can get it from the top minds."

On this episode of the Silicon Slopes Podcast, Clint is joined by Trent Mano who is a founder of Convoi Ventures, to have a chat about investing and entrepreneurship in Utah. They talk about shifting the culture around investing in local companies and why bootstrapping is important for gaining traction. Trent shares the story of starting Convoi and how it evolved into a household name for founders across the state. The startup game has evolved greatly over the last few years and new founders are having to adapt in the changing market to raise funds. Through this evolution, new talents have emerged, bringing about some of Utah's best to the startup scene. Tune in to hear more about the inner workings of Convoi and how they're putting Utah's founders on the map! "Being a founder is lonely and having a community, we feel, is a super important part of the journey."