Revolution’s Rise of the Rest is hosting a career fair for tech jobs outside the big 3 hubs

Next month, D.C.-based Revolution’s Rise of the Rest is furthering its mission to boost startup growth outside of the top VC cities with a virtual Tech Talent Tour for jobseekers.

The event, which will be held remotely from June 22-24, hopes to connect workers with startup leaders outside of Silicon Valley, New York and Boston. Attendees will be able to speak to hiring managers as well as startup founders with openings. According to Rise of the Rest, which focuses on investment outside the hub cities, there are over 1,000 open roles in 50 cities in its seed fund portfolio that attendees can be connected to.

Steve Case, CEO of Revolution and cofounder of AOL, thinks that especially given the last year’s turn to remote work, markets outside those hub cities will only grow. Of those that his venture firm surveyed, more than 70% of companies in Revolution’s portfolio said they’ve increased staff over the past 12 months, as well, meaning that the startup world hasn’t been slowed by the pandemic.

“As a founder, building the right team is paramount to success,” Case said in a statement. “Yet we often hear from entrepreneurs and startup ecosystem builders, in cities outside the coastal tech hubs, about the challenges of recruiting and retaining talent. The pandemic, however, has the potential to redefine how and where people work.”

In true tech event style, the career fair will also include spotlight conversations hosted on Clubhouse for cities including Austin, Baltimore and Chicago. Startup, political and cultural leaders from 16 cities will chat with attendees on what it’s like to live in their city for those interested in transplanting. Partners in the event include 2U, AnitaB.org, InHerSight, Powderkeg, Purpose Jobs and Valence. 2U, a Lanham, Maryland-based education technology company, is also developing a toolkit for attendees with tips from hiring managers and Rise of the Rest portfolio companies.

Given the flexibility of remote work, and its ever-growing momentum, the event organizers hope the new virtual workplace can continue to grow outside markets. An Upwork Future Workforce Pulse Report estimated that 36.2 million Americans would be working remotely by 2025, an 87% increase from pre-pandemic levels.

Since 2014, Rise of the Rest has (usually) hosted an annual five-day road trip to shine a light on growing tech cities, visiting 43 locales since  inception before last year’s trip was postponed due to COVID. In December, Revolution held a $2 million pitch competition for Black entrepreneurs as part of the Rise of the Rest tour.