Gardner Institute findings: Tech workers attracted to Utah's outdoors

By Brice Wallace 

Tech and rec have a connection beyond rhyming. The bonds between Utah’s technology sector and outdoor recreation are strong and numerous.

Those gathered for a recent panel discussion about those bonds said they were happy to see research conducted by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute that quantified what previously was a matter of anecdotal evidence.

Nothing in the studies was surprising, according to Gov. Spencer Cox. Several years ago, he said, he met with the leaders of Silicon Slopes, who said it was difficult to recruit workers from outside Utah. But that is different now because as Utah’s tourism numbers “exploded,” so did growth in Utah’s economy and specifically the tech sector.

“I’m not saying there’s a direct causal relationship … but there certainly is anecdotal evidence that it was impacted,” Cox said, “and now we have real evidence that this has been an important piece of the growth that we’ve had here.”

The institute and Utah Outdoor Partners surveyed tech industry employees about the importance of outdoor recreation and access to wilderness. The results showed that of Utah natives working in the tech industry that left Utah and moved back, 82 percent said outdoor recreation and/or access to wilderness and public lands was an “important” or “extremely important” factor in moving back — ranking higher than family, career opportunities and cost of living. A similar results — 79 percent —of transplants to Utah said the same thing.

Also, of the 38 percent who chose to stay in Utah despite a higher-salary offer elsewhere, 85 percent said outdoor recreation and/or access to wilderness and public lands was their most important factor in opting to stay.

The tech-employees survey follows an earlier survey of executives of the fastest-growing businesses in Utah, who indicated that Utah’s outdoor recreation opportunities were important to those executives either growing their operations here or moving them to the state. The most important factor they cited was the ability to attract and retain a workforce, with outdoor lifestyle and access to a variety of outdoor options coming in second and third.

The executive survey results indicated that all respondents agreed that recreational opportunities are an essential part of Utah’s quality of life, 92 percent said they are an important part of Utah’s economy, and 83 percent said rec opportunities attract high-quality employees and good jobs to Utah.

Cox said he was struck by the 85 percent who said outdoor recreation and/or access to wilderness and public lands was their most important factor in opting to stay in Utah even when having a higher-salary offer elsewhere. “So, you can’t pay people enough to leave once they get here and get to experience what we’re experiencing here,” Cox said.

While Utah is no longer in the top 10 among states for in-migration of people, it does lead the nation in the lowest percentage of out-migration. “That’s happening because people love it here, they love what we have, and, of course, outdoor recreation and these opportunities [and] public lands are so important there,” he said.

Karl Sun, co-founder and CEO at Lucid, said talented Utah workers used to believe they had to go to San Francisco, New York or other places to get experience before they returned home. But that is no longer the case because of Utah’s business and recreational opportunities, he said.

“They’re staying, and I think that’s fantastic,” Sun said. “I think we’re also holding on to that talent so that they don’t have to come back. They can stay because they know that they can build their career but also just have a fantastic experience raising a family or just experiencing what Utah has to offer.”

And it’s not just younger people being lured to Utah by those factors, he added.

“In terms of the employees, it’s the junior employees, younger employees, you think about the outdoor recreationists, but it’s also other talent, people moving here with families or later on in their careers,” he said. “I think you’re seeing those people move here too, and the outdoors and recreation are a huge part of that.”

Carine Clark, partner at Pelion Venture Partners, president and CEO of Banyan and a builder of tech companies in Utah, said she enjoys the trails near her home. “Especially in the tech sector, we’re in the bits and bytes all day long,” she said, “and I want to be outside every single day, in the morning and at night, and it’s a chance for me to connect with my family.”

While tech-sector employees were the focus of the most recent study, House Speaker Brad Wilson said he suspects similar results could be obtained by surveying every industry.

“It’s so much bigger than tourism,” Utah Rep. Doug Owens, D-Salt Lake, said of outdoor recreation. “This underpins a huge swath of the economy, not only tech but medical and fintech, all of the finance and other big, big segments of our economy that are recruiting here based on recreation and wanting to remain here,” he said.

A common theme of the panel discussion was concern about outdoor recreation sites being “loved to death.” Wilson said the state is working to create new state parks and improve infrastructure through the park system. He said he is “wistful” about outdoor recreation because he believes his children will have a tougher time accessing the outdoor activities he has enjoyed throughout his life.

That’s where the newly created Utah Outdoor Adventure Commission can help, he said. It is focused on protecting, preserving and growing outdoor assets for Utahns “so that our kids and grandkids have a place to play,” Wilson said.

“We are not just investing in our recreation assets because it will strengthen the tourism sector of our economy,” he said. “We are investing in recreation because it will strengthen every sector of our economy, and the quality of life of our people.”