In addition to being one of the oldest and most historic cities in the United States, Boston is also one of the oldest tech hubs in America. It houses one of the world’s most prestigious universities (Bill Gates, the CEO of Boeing, stars Natalie Portman and Matt Damon, and multiple U.S. presidents all went to Harvard) and was the birthplace of Facebook (creator Mark Zuckerberg began the endeavor while a student at the Ivy League school). However, despite its strong ties to some of the world’s most powerful people, Boston has a lot more to offer, including a booming economy and a perfect environment for start-ups.
While Boston lacks a “Silicon” nickname, that hasn’t prevented it from living up to the hype of the title. With companies like Akamai, Trip Advisor, Fidelity Investments, Gillette, and Bain & Company, there is no shortage of popular corporations to draw a tech crowd. However, the historical city also boasts of some of the fastest-growing start-ups in the world.
With an annual User Experience Conference through UXPA, the masses gather in Boston to hear what big names have to say. The city is also playing host to the User Interface Engineering (UI20) Conference 2015, where several popular speakers will address the crowd of New England-based UX professionals. Additionally, Boston also throws the annual UX Fest, which is known to bring execs from companies like Disney, StumbleUpon, Vimeo, and Etsy (as well as thousands from across the country).
Like in so many large cities, there is a very strong UXPA and IxDA presence in the Boston metropolitan area. UX developers and designers are welcomed (nay, encouraged) to join the members-only associations, which in turn, equip these professionals with a variety of resources that range from strategic networking, helpful forums, job postings, and other tools.
To risk a stereotype, it may be the large Irish presence in Boston that encourages so many social gatherings (read: happy hour meet-ups). However, according to Meetup.com, nearly all of the groups that assemble throughout the area meet up for the occasional festivity and drinks. From the UX Happy Hour and Boston UX Social Hour groups (which, as their names imply, meet exclusively to socialize and connect with other UX-ers) to UX Boston (a community that gathers for a wide variety of events, including workshops, discussions, and an occasional happy hour), the UX professionals from the Boston area never go bored (or thirsty)!
So whether drawn to Boston for its charm, its intriguing history, or its opportunities (or all three), the beautiful New England city offers an endless supply of tools and resources to its valued UX professionals.
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