Heath Guinn, President of Sync.Space, a regional startup business accelerator will be representing Kingsport, TN as one of the 46 leaders, from all across the rural and urban communities of the state. These members will be working together to create a stronger Tennessee through collaborative, non-partisan dialogue on issues of state importance as part of Leadership Tennessee’s class of 2019-2020. Leadership Tennessee aims to create recognition for Tennessee nationally as a state where leaders and engaged citizens are connected, well-informed, and committed to solving problems through strategic dialogue and balanced, pragmatic approach. This is pursued by annually bringing together a new class of leaders which will visit different areas in Tennessee as they collaborate together in order to build synergy in their solutions as they study and observe statewide issues.
Guinn explains he is excited to have the opportunity to serve beside these fellow leaders as they receive a chance to comprise solutions to issues affecting all Tennesseans. Guinn states, “I believe that entrepreneurship is a key component of our economic development recruitment strategy and retention of our talented youth. Entrepreneurial thinking has to start with young students and be carried forward into startup companies that can help solve issues of our region.”
Heath Guinn is an entrepreneur and community leader based in Kingsport, Tennessee. Over the last 20 years, Guinn has started multiple companies and continues to own four independent businesses, all located in Northeast Tennessee.
Guinn is a key member of the entrepreneur community of Northeast Tennessee, and a leading voice for small business in the strategic visioning and planning taking place in the region. He has a desire to build a more resilient local community and in 2019 his successes towards this include helping startups with market access programs with regional employers, university and school systems, research agreements with ETSU, and more than $1,000,000 of investments and services for local startups.
Guinn is also a current member of the Kingsport Chamber Foundation Board, Educational Alignment Committee, Regionalism Committee of Northeast Tennessee, Two-county Action team for entrepreneurship in Sullivan and Washington counties and a TN Achieves mentor.
The members will come together for the first time in August as they begin to collaborate and start dialogue on the issues at hand.
To learn more about Leadership Tennessee, visit www.leadershiptennessee.org.
