President - Leadership Middle TN
Action Oriented - Regional Thinking - Leadership Middle Tennessee on Traffic Solutions
When Leadership Middle Tennessee president Lee Rucks accepted the invite to share a ride with Hytch - Carissa Biele had some tricks in mind - but Rucks didn’t miss a beat. Carissa’s infamous trivia challenge didn’t stump her rideshare partner.
In her role as an organizer of leaders, Lee Rucks pays close attention to the concerns of leaders in all ten member counties. Leadership Middle Tennessee is an organization dedicated to regional thinking in exploring issues facing this area. Often referred to as “LMT” the mission is to educate key decision makers to advance our quality of life. The goal is to equip each new class with the tools and connections needed to make a difference as graduates.
For example, counted among graduates of the LMT class of 2016 is the Co-Founder and CEO of Hytch. Mark’s experience in the organization played a big role in his drive to create a practical, technology driven option to help alleviate congestion in Middle Tennessee.
“I was inspired by a consistent concern expressed in every single county regarding the stress of congestion, the crazy cost of transportation infrastructure and real workforce mobility issues,” Cleveland says. “Our choice to drive alone in a car everywhere we go is still a choice. Rewarding good transit decisions - like sharing a ride to work - that’s the single straightest path to defend clean air and defeat traffic.”
And it doesn’t cost anything! Thanks to sponsors like Nissan, Sprint and Franklin Synergy Bank, Hytch Rewards is free, and it’s the first app that pays you cash for sharing a ride.
Business leaders appreciate how incentives and rewards work! The Nashville Technology Council agrees, recently recognizing the company as the 2018 Emerging Company of the Year.
Rucks suffers her own daily commute, which can sometimes double during rush hour. She was quite happy to take her car off of the road by Hytchin’ with Carissa and be a part of the solution. Acknowledging the importance of every individual in leading the charge: “I love the carpool idea obviously, the bus, any type of mass transit,” she says.
By 2030, vehicle traffic in Tennessee will increase by 20%, and Rucks, alongside more than 500 influential Leadership Middle Tennessee alumni expect to have an impact on this trend.
Time to meet the LMT Class of 2018 - “The Best Class Ever” - graduating on May 15th to take the next step on their journey to have a greater positive impact, one decision at a time.
