Aug. 22, 2023

This week’s Up-and-Comer is Jonah Snyder, vice president of operations at VIKOR Teleconstruction.

Name: Jonah Snyder

Age: 29

Hometown: Sioux Falls

What brought you to Sioux Falls?

During college in Utah, I started a cell phone tower investment business called Elevated Towers with my dad, Craig, and several partners in Sioux Falls. Once I graduated, I got involved with the family business, VIKOR Teleconstruction, and both opportunities reeled me back home to Sioux Falls!

What keeps you in Sioux Falls?

I don’t think there’s a better place with a more business-friendly environment for ambitious young professionals like myself. After spending about six years away living in various other places, I’ve planted roots here in Sioux Falls and even managed to convince my lovely wife to move here from Utah when we got married this summer.

What’s your favorite thing about your job?

I love the feeling that I have the opportunity to bring people and ideas together and create something that didn’t exist yesterday. I’ve discovered a real passion for entrepreneurship, and at VIKOR, I’m surrounded by people who give me the chance to spread my wings and take risks.

How did you get connected to your industry?

My dad, Craig Snyder, started VIKOR a few years before I was born, back in 1989, so I’ve been surrounded by the tower world since I was young. I really only took a serious interest in the company when it came time to start setting a trajectory for my career. VIKOR has grown a lot in the last decade, and a few years ago, I was asked to step in and manage the construction of the Verizon small cells in downtown Sioux Falls, and I’ve been neck deep in the telecommunications industry ever since.

Describe your workplace in three words.

Grit, elevation, vision.

What is something someone might be surprised to learn about you?

I used to work as a wilderness therapy guide in college and spent hundreds of nights sleeping under the stars and living primitively.

What’s your favorite way to give back to your community?

I volunteer at my church with our youth program and love spending my Wednesday nights and Sunday afternoons with the teenagers from our congregation at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

What’s one business you’d like to see in Sioux Falls that isn’t here now?

I’d love to see an REI in our community, but I don’t know that they could do it any better than the Great Outdoor Store!

If you had a million dollars to start a business, what kind of business would it be?

Hmmm, well I might consider opening a second Pomegranate Market in our community! Keep an eye out for that in the future. 😉