The Northeast Tennessee Regional Hub (NETNHub) has announced the appointment of John Rose to the newly created position of executive director, effective December 4. Rose currently serves as director of Economic Development for the city of Kingsport. He will handle the day-to-day management of Hub activities previously overseen by Dennis Phillips, who retired from the position of Launch CEO in June.

 

In announcing the hire, Bristol Motor Speedway President Jerry Caldwell, who chairs the NETNHub Board of Directors, said, “We’re thrilled John Rose will lead the Hub forward. John has a track record of success in the region. People know him, they know they can trust him, and he has a history of working well with others.”

 

Caldwell said as the Hub refocuses on becoming a resource and collaborator with existing businesses and organizations, Rose is well qualified to lead the organization forward. “It takes time to build relationships, to understand what people’s concerns are and what they want, and to have and convey appropriate respect for that,” Caldwell said. “John already has years of experience investing in relationships in our region.”

 

“The greatest indicator of future performance is past performance,” Caldwell said. “You look at the track record, you look at the kind of person you’re dealing with, and you inspect the fruit of that person’s labors – what have they produced in the past? When you look at the success that John Rose has had and the type of person he is known to be, he is exactly who we need.”