Richard J. Sylvia, Jr.
Henry County business and civic leader Richard J. Sylvia, Jr. joined the Henry County Water Authority (HCWA) Board in the summer of 2024, after being sworn into office prior to the June Board Meeting.
Mr. Sylvia was appointed by District 2 Henry County Commissioner Neat Robinson to serve on the Water Authority Board at least through the end of 2024, to fulfill the unexpired term of former HCWA Board Member Bruce Holmes.
Professionally, Mr. Sylvia is a Program Management Consultant for Talent Groups, based in Houston, Texas, where he provides strategic consulting services for a healthcare benefits provider company.
“I assist clients with management strategies by taking their ideas and putting them through a prescriptive process, first determining if there is a market and product fit, respectively, to satisfy their needs,” he says. “I find where clients have the most pain points and provide solutions to resolve said issues, and eventually provide a means to take them to the next level of profitability.”
Prior to his current role with Talent Groups, Mr. Sylvia worked for nearly a decade with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) as Director of Innovation and Thought Leadership, and Cloud Technology Partners, which was acquired by HPE. He also has past professional experience with Siemens IT Solutions & Services, and IBM, where he worked at the Atlanta Olympic and Paralympic games.
Mr. Sylvia hopes to bring his 40 years of professional experience in management consulting and program and project management to his service as an HCWA Board Member.
“I will take the necessary time to understand the processes and procedures, and what we’re trying to accomplish, before determining where I can best serve to help the Henry County Water Authority accomplish their goals. Strategically, I can always see the end game,” he notes.
While Mr. Sylvia has a decorated professional career, his passion is servant leadership in his community. Since moving to Henry County in 2000, Mr. Sylvia has been involved with national and local non-profit organizations, providing leadership, strategic and program management advisory, coaching and mentoring services.
Mr. Sylvia is currently a Board Member for the Henry County Chamber of Commerce, in addition to serving in higher education as a Board Member of the School of Public Health at Clark Atlanta University, as well as a Member of the Advisory Board for the College of Business at Clayton State University, where he serves as their Executive in Residence.
Mr. Sylvia attained an Executive Master of Business Administration Degree (MBA) from Boston University, after studying electronic engineering technology at Northeastern University. In addition, he is a former Certified Project Management Professional with the Project Management Institute in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.