Meet Brett Schklar | Director, CLOUDcolorado

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brett Schklar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brett, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Colorado has been an incredible place that has attracted some of the most amazing humans with a focus on the technology industry over the last few years.

Our community of those in software, SaaS (Software as a Service), Internet, really doesn’t have an organization that is designed to help tomorrow’s leaders of this company to learn, connect and inspire in Colorado.

There are some tech-focused organizations/associations, but they’re primarily designed for the CEO’s of the companies. I wanted to create something that helped build the voice of Colorado’s cloud economy and represented everyone – not just the leaders of big companies.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
By nature, I’m a person who loves to connect humans to other humans, provide inspiration and ideas, as well as create an environment where it is easy for people to thrive.

While I’ve got several entrepreneurial endeavors (some are actually successful), my passion is to build communities where people can support other people in a fundamental and monumental way.

On a mission to help educate, connect and inspire the people around me, I’ve created CLOUDcolorado – an organization designed to be the voice of Colorado’s cloud economy. In this organization, people who are a part of Colorado’s thriving cloud industry (think SaaS companies, Software companies, Cloud Infrastructure, Internet and others) now have a way to connect, collaborate and inspire each other.

One big reason for putting this together is to create an environment of support, mentorship and growth for people as I’ve had people around me do the same – which has helped fuel my success in work, life and joy.

Challenges are everywhere – what has been the secret to my success is nothing special: knowing who to reach out to for help and support when needed. Imagine a world where everyone benefits from being a part of a community that is focused on helping each other, providing guidance and support and being the inspiration at the right time.

The one true lesson I’ve learned is that people are successful when they get the help from other people. It’s not rocket surgery – it’s just good practice – help others and seek help when needed.

My personal vision is to help educate, connect and inspire those around me. So – how can I help?

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I am clearly biased, but some of my favorite spots are the areas I most frequent: Wash Park (Washington Park) and Cherry Creek. When friends come to visit, we walk or bike around Wash Park to soak in all the fantastic people-watching and then we’ll get a great meal at Machete, Fortune Wok to Table, or True Food.

Staying for a bit longer? – great! We’ll hit a show at Red Rocks.

Staying for a Week in June? – perfect – Let’s do Ride the Rockies so we can see the coolest parts of Colorado from a bike saddle.

Don’t want to stay in one place? No problem – let’s take a road-trip down towards Durango and the four corners. So much cool stuff to do between Denver and the SouthWest corner.

Don’t want to stay in just one state? Rock on – let’s drive west on I-70 and get to all the amazing views to the west of Vail and into Utah.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to give a major shoutout to all the people who make up the voice of Colorado’s cloud economy. Not just the leaders, but the ones who really get stuff done and bring the experience, wisdom, fresh ideas and inspiration to our innovative world in Colorado.

Website: www.cloudcolorado.org

Instagram: brettitogrande

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bschklar/

Twitter: twitter.com/brettschklar

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bschklar/