Two years ago, Utah business leaders and the Utah Chamber unveiled an economic vision called ‘Utah Rising.’ Now, they’re looking for companies across the state to help implement it.
The chamber is encouraging every Utah business, however large or small, to review the initiative’s six focus areas and choose at least one action item to advance over the next two years. The goal is to keep Utah one of the best places in the country to live, work and build a future.
“Utah’s success has never been an accident. In Utah, we build the future we want, we don’t wait for it to happen, and that is exactly what Utah Rising is about,” said Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Utah Chamber. “As part of this update, we took a hard look at the plan and asked a simple question: How can every business get involved? Adding action items that present practical steps for businesses to take will make a far greater and longer-lasting impact.”
Utah Rising’s six focus areas that together define Utah’s economic strength are workforce and education, transportation, business environment, housing, livability and natural resources. Each focus area carries a strategic goal, measurable indicators tracked on a public dashboard, and a signature project.
“Practical” is a key word in the updated Utah Rising plan as it seeks to convert long-term goals into concrete steps. For example, in the workforce and education focus area, the plan includes the goal of raising third-grade reading proficiency to 100 percent by 2030. Examples of action items to reach that goal include encouraging businesses to offer employees paid time to mentor young readers, sponsor local literacy initiatives and partner directly with schools.
“Planning, coordinating, collaborating and working together have always been the key ingredients in Utah’s ‘secret sauce,’” said Spencer P. Eccles, chair of the Utah Rising Steering Committee. “Utah Rising builds on that tradition by providing our business community with the framework and tools needed to address today’s challenges while strengthening our economy and expanding opportunity for all Utahns today and for generations to come.
“Now is the time to act. If every Utah business commits to just one meaningful action, our collective efforts will have an extraordinary impact for generations to come.”
The newly added action items are at utahrising.com.
Utah Rising is guided by a steering committee of Utah business and community leaders and spearheaded by the Salt Lake Chamber and Utah Chamber.
Leaders unveiled Utah Rising in April 2024, envisioning it as a broadening of the “Downtown Rising” initiative two decades earlier to include the entire state. At the time, Eccles said Utah Rising would not replace visionary efforts of the past but instead would expand upon them. The Utah Rising vision and plan were released that fall, with a plan to update it every two years over the next decade.
The initiative has played a role in the Utah Chamber’s advocacy and long-term economic priorities. During the 2026 legislative general session, the Utah Chamber achieved a 100 percent success rate on its priority legislation, including policies that advanced the goals outlined in Utah Rising. “The addition of business action plans marks the next phase of the initiative by inviting every Utah business to help turn that vision into measurable progress,” the chamber said.
