This summer, Microsoft announced it would launch a new venture unifying the company’s top technology events — the Management Summit, the Exchange, SharePoint, Lync, Project, and TechEd conferences — as the best of what Microsoft has to offer to its business partners and customers. Last Thursday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined Howard Tullman of 1871 Chicago, Don Welsh of Choose Chicago, Jorge Ramirez of the Chicago Federation of Labor, and Microsoft’s own Julia White to announce Microsoft Ignite, a 2015 initiative bringing over 20,000 of Microsoft’s business partners to Chicago to explore innovation and technology in the business world.
Ignite, which will take place May 4 – 8 in Chicago’s McCormick Place, bringing enterprise solutions to thousands passionate about technology and furthering their skills. With keynote speaker Satya Nadella joining other tech and business leaders such as Brad Anderson, Joe Belfiore, Dave Campbell, Peggy Johnson, Chris Jones, Julie Larson Green, and Gurdeep Singh Pall, Ignite plans to do just what its name entails — set a fire on technology in Chicago and beyond.
Particularly, we are greatly appreciative of Mayor Emanuel’s nod to Microsoft’s work in STEM education in Chicago at last week’s press conference. It is our mission to promote STEM education in the Chicago area and to keep the city a thriving, innovative hub, and Mayor Emanuel’s acknowledgements showed us that we are doing just that.
“Even before this convention they’re going to host, Microsoft is a partner with Lake View High School and DePaul University,” remarked Mayor Emanuel. “It is one of the unique schools in the city of Chicago for STEM education that goes from 9th grade all the way through into college. If a young man or woman from Lake View finishes all the way through, they’re guaranteed a job interview at Microsoft starting at $50,000.”
Ventures like Microsoft Ignite keep partnerships like ours thriving and relevant. Chicago is experiencing a cultural shift that embraces technology and innovation and makes those things commonplace. That’s why Microsoft focuses on STEM and STEAM education — to promote these skills in the workplace, to create more tech-based jobs, and to find solutions to civic problems through technology. Chicago is quickly emerging as a technology hub, and focusing on developing technology leaders is one way Microsoft can ignite this change and keep the fire burning.
And we want you to join us.
Registration for Microsoft Ignite is open now. Ignite your future, learn about technology, and connect with some of the brightest minds in civic tech. See what’s next for technology — and be a part of it.
Read more about the Microsoft Ignite conference at the Official Microsoft Blog.