For the first time, Tribaja will be bringing its Diversitech Fest live and in-person. 

After hosting the last year’s Diversitech Fest under a hybrid format, this edition of the three-day event will build off of last year’s successes in a more exclusive fashion. 

It’s something that Tribaja founder and Diversitech creator Shannon Morales is really excited to bring to Philadelphia.

“It’s our first time having a completely in-person conference, which means people get to come into our backyard, they get to experience Philadelphia for all that it has to offer, and get to engage with local professionals and those that are flying in nationally,” Morales told AL DÍA. 

She added, “I think it brings a new type of energy and visibility to Philadelphia’s tech ecosystem.” 

Diversitech Fest is the ultimate event for tech enthusiasts, creatives, entrepreneurs, and professionals in the tech, music, arts, and cultural industries.

The three-day event is suitable for anyone looking to enhance their skills, connect with peers, discover new innovations, learn from industry experts, and many others. 

Similar to last year, the 2023 Diversitech Fest will feature a number of prominent names within the tech landscape nationwide. They will speak on topics such as their experiences in the field, tips on how to transition into or succeed within the field, the power of career planning, the evolution of technology, recruitment tactics, and various others.

“A lot of content is geared towards career changers and professionals who are just trying to navigate today’s job market and understand what’s in demand and what skill sets they need to obtain in order to stay relevant and have longevity in a career within tech,” said Morales. 

Some prominent names who will be speakers include David Delmar Sentíes, founder of Resilient Coders; Jalonni Weaver, a recruiter at Slalom; Allie Joy Tsahey, executive director at Baddies in Tech; Hady Mendez, CEO of Boldly Speaking LLC; Sandra Mosquera, vice president and product manager at JP Morgan Chase; and many more.

“It’s a lot of professionals who are making a major impact in this space,” she added. 

With Philadelphia’s tech landscape evolving, Diversitech Fest is in partnership with a number of organizations to maximize its impact.

One of the partnering organizations is Philly Startup Leaders, the largest and most active community of startup entrepreneurs in Philadelphia dedicated to helping increase the number of entrepreneurs and startups in the region. 

On the eve of the Diversitech Fest — Tuesday, May 2 — Startup Leaders will be hosting its 12th annual Entrepreneur Expo, the largest annual showcase of early-stage startups and technology companies in the region. 

For the second consecutive year, the Entrepreneur Expo will take place as part of the Diversitech Fest. 

Isabelle Kent, CEO of Philly Startup Leaders, spoke to AL DÍA to detail the impact last year’s Entrepreneur Expo had. 

“It was great,” she said. “We found that a lot of people got value out of coming back in-person, and I think it’s really instilled some faith that the Philly startup community was recovering.”

Similarly, the goal is to build on that success continue building that momentum.

This year, however, will be different as it will be the first year that Entrepreneur Expo won’t be held on a Wednesday, which falls right in the middle of Philly Tech Week. 

Kent hopes that kicking off Diversitech Fest with Entrepreneur Expo will help set the tone for attendees, regardless of where they are in their tech journey or tech career.

“Whether you’re a job seeker, whether you’re an entrepreneur, whether you’re an intrapreneur and working for a large corporation, or a startup already, you’re going to come to Entrepreneur Expo, you’re going to find that inspiration that lets you know that there’s an alternative to different avenues that you could pursue as you build your tech career,” she said. 

Kent underscored that the Entrepreneur Expo will be held from two separate tracks.

The first track is tailored to startup founders and individuals interested in entrepreneurship.

“I think it’s really important right now that a lot of change that needs to happen in the world of business is also happening in large-scale corporations,” said Kent. “Innovation is not going to be exclusive to simply the folks who are working in startups; we need folks who think like entrepreneurs, like startup founders who also work in large corporations.

The second track is what Kent calls, “the talent track.”

“That might be for folks who are coming out of boot camps, who are just starting to build their careers and want to get their feet wet and really understand what this world is first, and they want to get some traction before they jump into entrepreneurship,” she continued. 

Or it could be for those who have decided that being a founder is not for them, but want to stay on the track where they’re working to help build products that will eventually enter into the market.

As a kickoff, the experience at Entrepreneur Expo can then tie into the panels and sessions that will take place at Diversitech Fest. 

“During Diversitech Fest, you’re going to see these speakers,” said Kent. “That’s where you’re going to deep dive into some of these insights, where you’re going to understand how people go to where they are, and hopefully be able to apply that to your own careers and in your own lives.” 

A new feature of this year’s Diversitech Fest, as part of the in person dynamic, is live activations where attendees can have brief one-on-one meetings with executives, allowing these executives to also double as mentors. In addition, attendees will 

Diversifying the tech landscape is a personal passion project for Morales, and is one that she will always go the extra mile in helping push forward. 

In March 2023, Tribaja was named one of 16 grantees of the Google Tech Equity Collective (TEC) Impact Fund, an initiative started by Google to accelerate Black innovation in the tech industry. 

“We’re going to use a portion of those funds to create a better experience for Diversitech this year,” said Morales. 

The 2023 Diversitech Fest will take place May 3-5, 2023, at Rivers Casino. For a full list of panels and sessions, click here.