An educated, skilled, ethical work force. An airline hub. Opportunities for fun outside the workplace. Economic incentives.

All of those and more were cited Thursday as reasons why big-name companies tabbed Utah for some of their operations.

"Utah has an outstanding work force," said David Carlebach, managing director in Salt Lake for Goldman Sachs, during a panel discussion at the Governor's Utah Economic Summit.

Goldman Sachs has 350 employees in Utah and plans to at least double that figure, he said. While the company is reconsidering plans for growth in all its markets, plans for growth in Utah "are as strong as ever," he said. Financial incentives from the state "eliminated the excuse" to grow elsewhere, he added.

Locating in Utah allowed the company to diversify its work force, and the company found a good "cultural fit" with Utah workers with integrity, he said.

"The humility and the earnestness of the work force is something that strikes everybody who comes out here from New York," Carlebach said.

Dave Checketts, owner of Real Salt Lake, said his Utah-educated and trained staff is "doing a sensational job."

Dave Baglee, co-president of IM Flash Technologies Inc., said the company has been "extremely happy with our work force," a group that totals more than 1,600 in the production of memory products for mobile devices.

Baglee described Utah government as "really pro-business" and the state's academic institutions as "strong."

But Baglee said nonwork activities are important, too.

"The one key thing is, you've got to keep the employees here, and it's what goes in a maybe four or five hours outside of work on a daily basis that keeps the employees engaged," he said. "Whether it's Real Salt Lake, or it's the Utah Jazz, or whether you like to play golf or go hiking, there are tremendous opportunities here in Utah, not just for company employees but also for their families."

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E-mail: bwallace@desnews.com