About Joe Owen

Education

Juris Doctorate — University of Louisville, Louisville, KY

B.S. in Business Administration — Murray State University, Murray, KY

Professional Affiliations

American Association of International Healthcare Recruiters (AAIHR) — One of the founding members; Member of the Board of Directors; Vice President 2008 and 2009; President in 2010

Board of Trustees of Murray State University Foundation — Member

PRofessional History

Joe Owen is a native of Kuttawa, KY. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Murray State and a JD from the University of Louisville Law School.

After graduating from the University of Louisville School of Law, Mr. Owen began his professional career as an attorney in Western Kentucky and in a few years was drawn to the real estate industry and started developing a company and team to develop and manage multi-family housing. The real estate company proceeded to participate in the development, management or ownership of approximately 3,600 multi-family units in six Southeastern states. During this process he became a HUD housing consultant working with nonprofits to develop housing for the elderly and the I/DD group homes. During the 1990's and early 2000s he continued to participate in real estate and I/DD segment. He also was a founder, member of the board of directors, and principal of a Tennessee based mortgage company that had offices in 6 states which was sold to a national publicly traded bank. He is still the President, Chairman of the Board, and principal of the real estate company which is based in West Kentucky.

While member of the law firm of Prince and Owen (currently Owen, Harvey & Carter) from 1971-1979, Mr. Owen founded and became President and CEO of J. Jerod & Associates, Inc. J. Jerod & Associates, Inc. is a multi-family real estate development and property management company which has developed, owned and managed more than 2,000 apartment units in six southeastern states. Many of the apartments are designed for the elderly and disabled. Mr. Owen was also an approved HUD housing consultant and in that capacity, assisted non-profit organizations in the development of MRDD group homes.

In 1990, Mr. Owen was the founder and CEO of Home Care Management, Inc., a Kentucky corporation that managed multiple facilities and programs that were structured to fulfill the needs of developmentally disabled individuals. The company was responsible for operating over 60 group homes and 5 adult day habilitation programs. Home Care Management served more than 200 clients and had in excess of 350 employees when it was sold to Rescare in 1996.

Mr. Owen was also one of the principals and a member of the Board of Directors of American Mortgage Source, Inc. of Nashville, Tennessee from 1991 until 1998. The company provided full mortgage services with operations and offices in six states in the southeast. The company was sold in 1998 to National City Corporations, a Cleveland, Ohio-based bank holding company.

In 2000, Mr. Owen was a principal and member of LDC Development, LLC which developed and owned a Fairfield Inn and Sleep Inn & Suites located in Smyrna, Tennessee. Both properties were sold in 2004.

In 2002 through Guardian Holdings, LP, Mr. Owen acquired The Guardian Group from its original owners who had founded the company in 1989. He served as its CEO/President until 2018. Under his management, the Guardian Group, Inc. owned and operated two separate companies, Guardian Healthcare Providers, Inc. and Guardian Community Living, LLC.

Under his leadership the company grew from 160 employees in 2001 to over 1,250 employees, growing its revenue from 10 million to over 50 million annually. Guardian Community Living was recognized by the Middle Tennessee Chamber of Commerce for 3 consecutive years as one of the Fastest Growing Companies in Middle Tennessee. The company was also a Finalist in the annual Nashville Business Journal program's "Healthiest Companies in Middle Tennessee," based upon the company's commitments to the health and wellness of its employees. Guardian was

In 2018, Guardian Group was sold to Boston-based private equity group Webster Capital. At the time of sale, the Company was one of the largest providers of I/DD services in Tennessee with operations in Memphis, Jackson, Nashville, and Kentucky, and was in the top 3% of revenue of all staffing companies in the U.S.

Mr. Owen now pursues his real estate development and investment work full time. He remains an avid fan of his alma maters' basketball and football programs, as well as the Tennessee Titans. He and his wife, Karen, divide their time between homes in Marshall County, KY and Brentwood, TN, and enjoy time spending time on Kentucky Lake at their lake home, boating, golfing, and keeping up with the lives of their five children.