Q&A: Jon Severson on a Weekend of Skiing and Networking

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Jon Severson is the president and founder of the Colorado Young Professionals. From Friday, Feb. 26, to Sunday, Feb. 28, savvy YPs from around the country gathered in Colorado to hit the slopes and network. This first annual YP Ski Weekend was hosted by Denver Young Professionals, and also included mountain activities, ski parties with live music, and tons of give-aways and contests. Be sure to check out more YP events here!
 
Below, Severson discusses the importance of making connections with other YPs – and gushes about his love for Colorado, the state that inspired America the Beautiful.
 
Why do you think these types of events are important for young professionals?
Such an event was important and will continue to grow in importance because we are bringing together not just the people from one city, or even one state – we’re getting young professionals to engage on a national level, which I think is important. One of the biggest strengths of YP groups is that we’re all pretty independent. But it is also our curse. We don’t answer to anyone. Our goal is to have a few signature events like this one over time, which are really strong and attract people to Colorado from all over the world.
 
How did the turnout compare to what you’d expected?
It was very good, but not as big as it could have been. We had everything set and ready to go in November with Copper Mountain, the town of Frisco, and other partners. But then Copper was sold two weeks later; our contact was gone, and a new one had taken her place. This delayed getting the word out by three months.
 
Are there any highlights from the weekend you would like to share?
The crew from Iowa was awesome – nothing like taking flatlanders skiing!
 
Can we expect a second annual ski weekend?
Yes. We’ll be working on the details over the summer, and hope to announce location, packages, sponsors, and more in October.
 
How do you plan to connect with YPs from across the country in the future?
Colorado is a destination point period. Everyone wants to live there – or at least visit there or ski there before they die--more than any other state. And rightfully so! It’s beautiful, with clean air and unlimited cultural and outdoors activities to choose from.
 
We’re looking for other YP groups to create long-term partnerships with to share best practices and promote key events with our members, showing the national connection we have. I’ve already talked with YP groups from around the country, and have even worked on helping the country of Cyprus develop [a partnership]. It’s a lot of work and has definitely been tough to manage at times, but our members are helping out now, which is rather exiting. I think our next big event will be drawing young professionals to Colorado Springs in the summer of 2011 – it’s home of the Air Force Academy; United States Olympic Committee; 22 non-governmental organizations (NGOs); Pike’s Peak, which was inspiration for America the Beautiful; and last but not least, the Broadmoor Hotel, which is the No. 1 Hotel in North America. Many staff members belong to our Colorado Springs Young Professionals Chapter. In general, it’s a beautiful town with 320 sunny days a year – perfect for such an event, with no shortage of activities.
 
Want to read about other young professionals who are making a difference? Check out YPNation's Q&A with David Cohn and learn about his investigative reporting outfit, Spot.Us.
 
Andrea Breiholz contributed to this story.
 
(Photo credit: cdamian; C.C. 2.0)