by David Chapman
Staff Writer
Amber Williams has a compulsion for always having a camera at the ready and using pictures to log her memories in various scrapbooks. A lot of fond memories have gone into those books over the years, but when it comes to work, one stands out in particular.
“Winning that,” said Williams, marketing director for Standard Pacific Homes, as she gestured to a translucent award on her desk.
“That” is the Excel Award for 2007 Marketing Director of the Year, which she won at the recent Excel Awards during the Southeast Builders Conference.
She makes one scrapbook a year and it’s likely the ceremony and award will be heavily featured in the upcoming volume.
“The best thing about it was that (longtime industry speaker) John Palumbo presented it to me,” she said. “I admire him so much.”
This upcoming book, though, like many of the ones she’s created, will likely be more than just awards.
Williams was born and raised in Jacksonville and attended Clay High. She later earned her degree in business administration with a focus in management from St. Leo’s University north of Tampa. She currently lives in Mandarin with her husband, Scott, who handles fiber optics for AT&T.
They’ve been married four years and though, his name his Scott, Williams has dubbed him “Superman.”
“He comes and rescues me in any situation,” she said with a laugh. “No matter where he’s at.”
Scott has helped her through, what she calls, the occasional hazards associated with her job — flat tires and car trouble. They are common in her constant travels to and from homesites when dealing with customers.
“I’ve had four of them (flat tires) and it’s always because of running over nails in construction areas of new developments,” she said. “They were good tires, too.”
You won’t see any scrapbooked pictures of her broken down on the side of the road but she does have a few favorite pictures of her weeklong honeymoon in the Caribbean, snorkeling and enjoying a break.
Her husband isn’t her only love of her life, though. That duty is shared by Brady, her Jack Russell Terrier named after former Jacksonville Jaguars player Kyle Brady.
“I wake up at 6 a.m. every day,” said Williams, “and I have to play with him for at least half an hour. He’s so cute.”
Williams won Brady at the Sales and Marketing Council’s benefit auction last November although the events that led up to the winning bid stand out more.
“He stayed at my house before the auction and I was mentally prepared that he wouldn’t be mine,” she said, remembering the week before the event.
Her father was the auctioneer. When the time came for the pup to be bid on, he wouldn’t budge from the floor when he was called — for anyone but Williams that is, who quietly called. He responded by bounding to her, tongue out and ears flapping. Williams’ husband quickly raised his hand for a bid of $300 and no one else bid.
“When I saw his hand shoot up, I was so happy,” she said.
Her passion for marketing came from her time at the Clay County Leader newspaper placing advertisements. She learned how newspapers were put together and the marketing aspects of the industry, and she was hooked.
“Once I started, I was relentless about it,” she said.
Williams has now been in the building industry for seven years, first with D.R. Horton before moving on to her current position with Standard Pacific. She said that over the years she has enjoyed learning every day and associating with the people, but community service is her favorite aspect of the job.
Williams contributes through volunteer efforts with programs such as Northeast Florida Builders Association’s Builders Care and The Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless.
“It’s not just me, though,” she said. “Everyone pitches in. The best thing is seeing upper management getting dirty and helping out.”
Her job as a marketing director isn’t always clean and smooth, but it’s one that she does well, as evidenced by the Excel Award.
By winning the award, Williams is automatically an entrant on the national level at the International Builders Show in Las Vegas in January 2008, an even she is eagerly awaiting.
“I can’t wait,” she said. “I really can’t. I’ve never been to Las Vegas before.”
Win or lose in the desert, her place at Standard Pacific is one where she expects to be for quite a while.
“I couldn’t imagine working for a better company,” she said. “I want to make it a career here.”