Our very own Rebecca Williams, Vice President and Group Creative Director, was recently featured in The 2020 Reel Black List alongside African-American leaders in creativity and marketing including Global Mixx founder Mary Datcher, McDonald’s US Marketing Director Lizette Williams, and filmmaker Rhyan LaMarr.
Williams sat down with Reel Chicago to break down her career and what makes her a phenomenal creative leader:
“How did you get into advertising?
I was working in PR, taking acting classes and doing a retail job on weekends. I’d always loved advertising and when an opportunity came up for an internship at UniWorld in New York, I applied.
Who were your mentors?
When I was a little girl, I’d hang out with my best friend and we’d color in the basement. The markers were always a little dry, but across the room was a desk with rows of brand new markers. When I asked why we couldn’t use them, she responded “Oh my Dad uses those for business.” I decided whatever her dad did, that’s what I wanted to do when I grew up. Her dad was Tom Burrell, founder of the agency where I am today. My first break and the mentor I learned from early on though was Byron Lewis, another pioneer in the ad industry. Byron had an incredible entrepreneurial spirit and was a staunch advocate for women. I started there as an intern and every time I left, Byron would hire me back until he finally made me CCO!”
You can read the full interview here.