Dow Smith Company Partners have received some new titles. Pictured from left to right are COO Trey King, CEO Joey Rhyne, CFO Shauna McConnell, and Visionary Dow Smith.
Great things are happening at Dow Smith Company and I could not be more excited about our current reality, maybe even more so for the future. We have added 10 great people since the beginning of 2022—Emily Beasley, AJ Blankenship, William Green, Carlos Hernandez, Daniel Isabell, Taylor Loyal, Landon McDearmon, Ryan Sanford, Mike Speirs, and Jason Tigg. They are pillars that we can continue to build on. This has happened in spite of a labor crisis in our economy. I credit the great culture within DSC. “Culture eats strategy for breakfast”.
As we have grown, so have many people within DSC. With that growth we have acknowledged the personal and development growth of Shauna McConnell, Trey King, and Joey Rhyne—who all have new titles.
I, myself, have grown as well. Like I have said in a previous blog, “the less I do, the more gets done.” In the revision of our organization, I will be serving as the “Visionary”.
But before we go forward, let’s take a quick look back at how far we’ve come.
The Dow Smith Company story started more than 30 years ago. Our very first job, in January of 1992, was the renovation of Building 661 at the Smyrna Airport. It was a job I took for the late Colonel Steve Fitzhugh and current Executive Director John Black. I was working out of a red Chevy S-10. That was my office and the company’s sole piece of equipment.
After I completed that job, I decided to upgrade my office from the pickup truck to the building I’d just renovated. Since that first project, Dow Smith Company has had many ups and downs. Fortunately, the ups far exceed the downs. Our office has moved four times from our first office in Building 661 (Building 660, 301 Jefferson Pike, 51 N. Lowry, and now 205 Sam Hager St.—all in Smyrna.). We have transitioned from being a low bid general contractor to a unique design-builder.
As we continue to make our mark on the community we all love, we wanted the titles of our partners to reflect the work we’ve been doing. Our new titles are as follows:
“A Visionary is a person who has lots of ideas, is a strategic thinker, always sees the big picture, has a pulse on your industry, connects the dots, and researches and develops new products and services,” according to Gino Wickman, author of Entrepreneurial Operation System. “The Visionary typically is the founding entrepreneur, operates more on emotion, and has ADD (but not always).”
I first heard the call of entering my life and business into the “Marketplace Ministry” in January 2004. From that time to now, the company and I have been intentional in serving Christ in the marketplace. I find great comfort and guidance from prayer. Among my favorites are The Welcoming Prayer by Thomas Keating, The Serenity Prayer specifically the portions “accepting hardships as a pathway to peace; taking as He did this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it,” and the Lord’s Prayer.
I am really drawn by the words of the great but yet under-appreciated theologian Bob Dylan - “If you are not busy being born, you are busy dying”. That is a major theme I read and see in Scripture and what Jesus taught. I try to apply that to my life.
Serving as the Visionary of DSC is an awesome gig. It is such a joy to serve with a fabulous team. Words cannot express how grateful I am to work with such awesome people who continuously demonstrate our core values: Passion, Hustle, Care and Detail.
I grew up in Nashville, Tennessee and am very thankful for my education at Glendale Elementary, John Trotwood Moore Middle School, and the black and red fightin’ Bobcats at John Overton High School.
Auburn University is my happy place on football game days. Surprising to many, Auburn granted me with a bachelor’s degree in Building Science. I am a regular tailgater at the AU football games. The Kick Six game still brings me tears of joy.
I am at my best when I am with my bride Cindy, regardless of what we are doing. And we are at our best when we are with our two awesome sons, Harris and Mitchell. We attend Cornerstone Methodist Church.
As Chief Executive Officer, Joey oversees Preconstruction Services and is responsible for customer relationships and retention.
Joey began his career in construction in 2001, joined Dow Smith Company in 2004, and became a Partner in 2012.
He is passionate about healthcare and church projects, serving clients who specialize in body and spirit. He believes in serving Christ in the marketplace by providing exceptional experiences for customers and team members.
Joey is a resident of Rutherford County and has been married to Christy Rhyne for more than 20 years. The couple has three beautiful children, Landon, Lanie, and Levi. Joey earned his Bachelor of Arts in Religion with a minor in Business Administration from Belmont University. He graduated from Hendersonville High School. The Rhyne family are members of LifePoint Church, where Joey serves as a board member and deacon coordinator.
Shauna grew up in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. She graduated from The University of Tennessee at Martin in 2000 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. She majored in Economics with a concentration in Finance.
As Chief Financial Officer, Shauna manages all aspects of DSC’s financials, administrative tasks, and human resources. The entire DSC team is dependent upon Shauna and so are our employees, vendors, subcontractors, and clients.
She has lived in Rutherford County for 20 years and has worked in the construction industry since 2000. Before joining DSC in 2012, she worked for a construction firm in Nashville. She became a partner at Dow Smith Company in 2019.
Shauna and her husband, Tony, have three children–Emma, Jessica, and Andrew. Her family attends LifePoint Church in Smyrna.
Trey has deep roots in Smyrna. His family has been here since the 1800s. He’s a proud alumnus of Smyrna Elementary, Thurman Francis, Smyrna Middle School, and Smyrna High School. He worked for the Town of Smyrna for 10 years before joining Dow Smith Company in 2017 and becoming a partner in 2021.
As Chief Operations Officer, Trey supports superintendents and optimizes subcontractors’ schedules. He is responsible for developing field processes and implementation of The Dow Smith Way. He talks with superintendents, project managers and subcontractors daily.
Trey and his wife, Brittany, have two children, Braden and Payton. Brittany teaches sixth grade at Rocky Fork Middle School. Trey attends LifePoint Church, where he is a deacon and leader of a life group. When he’s not working, Trey enjoys watching the Tennessee Vols, spending time with family, traveling, and playing golf.
