Last night marked the first meeting for the new Reno-Tahoe Young Professional Network (YPN). For those not familiar, YPN was recently created to serve as a driving force for attracting and retaining young professional talent in Northern Nevada.

There is a demographic deficit as it relates to young professionals and the size of Northern Nevada’s economy, so it is imperative that the area address the issue. The Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN) has been a huge catalyst for the creation of YPN, and you can read more about why in a post I wrote last week regarding Directions 2007. 

More than one-hundred of us gathered at 210 North, which is a new “lounge” located in downtown Reno. It was a  befitting setting considering the fact that the place absolutely exudes chic youth.

The primary focus of the meeting was to introduce the board members and all of the attendees, as well and explain the general purpose and direction of the group. There was much emphasis on the desire for it to be a collaborative organization  where anyone can be involved and make a difference.

YPN will be supported by an outside advisory board made up of senior professionals who will serve as mentors to the  group. Additionally, several large entities, including Charter Communications, Sierra Pacific Power, and EDAWN are providing significant monetary support, and everyone is encouraged to identify and solicit more benefactors to keep the group well-fueled.

My hope is that YPN can not only mentor other up-and-coming  professionals and provide valuable networking opportunities, but also pool its intellectual capital and  influence to effect positive change in public policy.

Working as a group to draft strategic recommendations to and for the City of Reno and Northern  Nevada is where I would like to see YPN heading. After last night’s meeting I am very optimistic that it is indeed where the group will eventually be.

tags: reno-tahoe, ypn, young professional network, northern nevada, edawn, city of reno

This entry was posted by Robert Payne on Wednesday, February 14th, 2007 at 1:20 pm and is filed under Current Affairs, Relationships. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.