One of the most prestigious events in business gathered thousands of American companies, entrepreneurs and journalists in Phoenix, Arizona recently for the annual Inc. 5000 Conference and Gala. The business exposition, which took place from October 19th to the 21st, provided innovators the chance to network and pitch their business ideas and talk with Inc.’s editorial staff. The three day gala concluded with a black-tie event celebrating achievements in the business community this year. Sportscaster Rich Eisen and comedian Amber Ruffin hosted this year’s gala.
Conference events and panels of note included:
- “Meet the Editors and Learn How Magazine Stories Are Made”
- “Breakfast and Banter: Purposeful Networking to Kickstart Your Day”
- “Kind Ambition: Strategies to Give Back While Pushing Ahead”
- “A Founder’s Second Act: Serial Entrepreneurship & Founding Fast-Growing Companies”
- “Streaming and Scaling: How Businesses Drive Growth in a Streaming First World”
- “How to Make Governments Work Better For Entrepreneurs”
- “On the Ball When it Comes to Personal Branding”
Notable speakers included Founder and CEO of Fubu Draymond John, Shark Tank star Phyllis Newhouse and Chairman and CEO of Pinnacle Group Nina Vaca. Robert F. Smith, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, was also among those who attended and spoke at the conference. Specifically, Smith joined Stephanie Mehta, CEO of Mansueto Ventures, to discuss strategic approaches for employee development. Smith discussed the critical need for companies and organizations to have internship programs to bring underrepresented people into their workforce. Smith’s belief in internship programs stems from his own experience as an intern at Bell Labs, a leading scientific research and development organization. Smith credits his internship at Bell Labs with putting him on a successful career trajectory. “You can start small, with maybe six interns total, and then grow from there,” Smith told the conference attendees. “Even a six-week summer program can allow you to get a good look at the next generation.”
Smith’s Work Supporting Career Development
Smith advocates for expanding career development opportunities at Vista Equity Partners and through his philanthropic work. Vista’s portfolio includes 85 companies employing 85,000 people total, requiring Smith to hire between 5,000 and 15,000 new employees per year. New hires across all the companies have access to talent development programs – earning Vista recognition by Inc.’s Founder-Friendly Investors list three times.
Smith also supports career development opportunities through the internXL program as founding Director and President of Fund II Foundation, an organization seeking to “preserve the African American experience, safeguard human rights, provide music education, preserve the environment while promoting the benefits of the outdoors, and sustain critical American values such as entrepreneurship.” The internXL program connects underrepresented college students to competitive, paid summer internship programs across industries to provide students with practical work experience as they prepare to enter the workforce full time.
Learn more about Smith’s initiatives to support minority students.
