SALT LAKE CITY — “Domo! Why don’t I have this? Get me this.”
Celebrity pitchman Alec Baldwin opens an advertisement spot with those words in promotion of this week’s Domopalooza Conference to be held March 21-25 at the Grand America in Salt Lake City.
The advertising spot continues like this: “If I’m going to expand my domain and rule this place with more swagger than Jagger, I need this now.” Then Baldwin shakes his head and says, "I still don’t know what it is.”
The self-deprecating spots are somewhat appropriate for the growing company founded by BYU graduate and multimillionaire Josh James in 2010.
So, what is Domo?
James developed the Domo business model as a Software as a Service company that fixed what he saw as fundamental problems in the business intelligence market. James believed executives didn’t have many of the tools and complete business data necessary to grow their companies.
Domo, James believes, can put that material in their hands. And apparently, the business world agrees. According to domo.com, the company “… with more than $450 million in funding … serves executives across every role and across a broad range of industries."
Domo is based in American Fork.
The Domopalooza event, now in its second year, is a way for the company to teach and inform its customers, as well as interested business investors, more about Domo.
“Events like these are pretty typical in the tech industry,” said Julie Kehoe, vice president of communications for Domo. “We have more than 1,500 people scheduled to attend, most of those are company’s business managers or above.
“We have company representatives from nearly 40 different states, as well as a couple from overseas companies. They typically have backgrounds in marketing, finance, technology and sales,” Kehoe said.
Along with James featured as one of the keynote speakers, this year’s conference offers a star-studded lineup of speakers and entertainment.
Earvin "Magic Johnson", the five-time NBA champion and three-time NBA MVP with the Los Angeles Lakers, will be one of the keynote speakers.
Since retiring from basketball, Johnson has been enormously successful in the business world as co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, the Los Angeles Football Club in Major League Soccer and as CEO of Magic Johnson Enterprises, a conglomerate of companies worth $700 million.
"Magic Johnson possesses incredible business acumen and is a great example of making a difference through true leadership," James said in a press release announcing Johnson would speak. "We're excited to bring his energy, experience and business savvy to Domopalooza. He's one speaker attendees won't want to miss."
Alongside Johnson, other speakers include:
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< li> Stanley McChrystal, a four-star general who ran special ops forces in Afghanistan and Iraq, is expected to speak about how he leveraged data to alter the course of wartime experiences.< /li>
< li> Steve Eisman, credited as the inspiration for the character Mark Baum, Steve Carrell’s role, in the Academy Award-nominated film “The Big Short,” is expected to talk about how he analyzed data to uncover significant truths the 2008 housing mortgage crisis.< /li>
< li> Kacy Harding, the head of Analytics for Connected Digital Propositions at Phillips, is expected to “share her expertise on how data is processed and analyzed to drive timely decisions across the health continuum,” according to a press release.< /li>
David Bang, the head of Temperature Management Solutions at DHL; Julie Yerks, Commercial Business Insights & Project Management leader at GE Digital; and, Eric Varvel, chairman of Emerging Markets and Sovereign Wealth Funds at Credit Suisse are also part of a long lineup of speakers on the agenda schedule.
With three days of boot camps, keynote speakers, workshops and breakout sessions, Domopalooza has also planned a program for its attendees to unwind and cut loose.
Entertainment guests include Flo-Rida, the award-winning rap and dance music artist; Nelly, the pop-rap artist perhaps best known for “It’s Getting Hot in Herre”; T.I., another Grammy award-winning rapper; and Walk the Moon, the indie rock group with the hit song “Shut Up and Dance.”
For admittance to the full conference, attendees paid nearly $2,200. However, that included the entertainment and two days of ski passes and rentals at Snowbird on Thursday and Friday.
Brady Bingham is a reporter with more than 25 years of journalism experience. Find Brady Bingham on Facebook at www.facebook.com/brady.bingham.92?ref=name or Twitter @BradyBingham.