Cindy Williams is Vice President of Client Services at Info Retail—a strategy and design agency, where she leads inter-disciplinary teams in customer advocacy and acquisition. She specializes in customer-centric relationships and collaboration to maximize the worth of brands and customer environments. Williams is highly experienced in home furnishings and bedding markets. She is a dedicated mentor, a court advocate for foster children, and candidate for a degree in psychology and criminal justice.

Since joining Info Retail in 2003, Williams has led the agency’s strategies in bedding and furnishings markets, serving a variety of international, national and online retail and manufacturing clients including Tempur-Pedic, Restonic, Dream Fit, Mattress Firm, Innovative Mattress Solutions, Klaussner, Lane and others. Prior to joining the firm, she led a distinguished 10-year career in bedding, as Southeast regional sales manager for International Bedding Corporation and manager of specialty sleep at Simmons Company.

Williams is a member of the board at WithIt—women’s leadership development network in the home and furnishings industries, and at the Better Sleep Council, educational arm of the International Sleep Products Association.

She writes a regular column at Sleep Savvy, a magazine for sleep products professionals, and has contributed to publications including Home Furnishings Business and Bed Times. Williams has spoken on the retail experience, the voice of the consumer and the practice of service design at a number industry conferences and tradeshows, including Furniture/Today Bedding Conference, World Market Center Las Vegas, and AmericasMart Atlanta.

Resolved to be also “a point of light” in her community, Williams is a founder and board member at a cost-free family counseling center in the north Georgia Appalachian area. She has worked as a court appointed special advocate for foster children, and is pursuing a degree in psychology and leadership studies at Kennesaw State University.

Parkway Properties, a member of the New York Stock Exchange, specializes in the operation, leasing, acquisition, and ownership of quality office properties. It has been a steward of capital in the public arena since 1971 and has been solely dedicated to the office industry since the mid‐1990’s. Parkway team members apply an uncompromising focus on operations, the cornerstone of their business strategy, to create a solid dividend and long-term returns to their shareholders and investment partners.

Parkway Realty Services is a commercial real estate services and advisory firm established in 1983 that currently manages and leases approximately 24 million SF of office space in 11 state.

Marti Blackstock is a real estate professional with 25+ years of experience in property management, leasing, marketing and asset management. Blackstock is a Certified Property Manager (CPM) & Certified Commercial Investment Manager (CCIM). Her current affiliations include Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA),  Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM), Commercial Investment Real Estate Institute (CIREI), Atlanta Board of Realtors, Central Atlanta Progress & Metro Atlanta Chamber. She is currently Vice President, Asset Manager with Parkway Realty Services responsible for the operational and financial performance of 14+ commercial properties totaling 5.5 million square feet in five submarkets in the Atlanta metropolitan area. This portfolio includes a 2.5 million square foot, four city-block, mixed-use asset in Downtown Atlanta.

The Hampton Inn Hotel at Atlanta Airport is located adjacent to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and just southwest of lively downtown Atlanta. Perfect for business at nearby Delta, NASCAR, and Tyler Perry Studios; a much needed vacation or a weekend away, you’ll stay in the center of it all.

Hampton Inn – Atlanta Airport is the 177th of all Hampton Inns worldwide and was recently renovated in November of 2011. Their newly renovated facilities provides the comfort of fall with a twist of Atlanta spice. With 127 guest rooms & 1,000 square feet of meeting space, Hampton Inn’s goal is to assist you in making every event a success!

In this episode of Inside the Winners’ Circle, Joyce is joined by Valarie White, Director of Sales at Hampton Inn – Atlanta Airport and talk about the many wonderful things they have in store for their guests!

Tim Trefzer, sustainability coordinator at the Georgia World Congress Center Authority, believes that passion & people skills will take you a long way. Be extremely passionate about what you do & have the versatility in working with colleagues in all levels of your organization.

Comprised of the Georgia World Congress Center, Georgia Dome, and Centennial Olympic Park, the Georgia World Congress Center Authority has committed to reducing the environmental impact of the events and operations on its campus in downtown Atlanta while maintaining economic sustainability.

Today on Inside the Winners’ Circle, we are joined by Tim Trefzer, the Sustainability Coordinator for the Georgia World Congress Center Authority. In this position, he assesses critical needs for improving, measuring and tracking the efficiencies of a variety of operational practices, including waste diversion, energy and water management, procurement, as well as working with clients to make their events “greener”. As a LEED AP, he has evaluated the costs and identified the hurdles of achieving LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance certification for both the Georgia World Congress Center and Georgia Dome. Prior to starting with the GWCCA in December 2010, Tim was a LEED Project Manager, managing the LEED certification efforts of a variety of different building types and LEED rating systems. Tim is a member of the USGBC – Georgia and the Green Meetings Industry Council – Atlanta branch. He is a graduate of Florida State University.

Charlie Kelly, Group Sales Manager at Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta, encourages you be the Voice of Reason. Learn how to bring good ideas to the table but also be open to the ideas of others. Open dialogue is key.

Situated in the heart of Atlanta’s Midtown district, Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta’s 244 ultra-spacious luxury hotel rooms and suites boast commanding views of the city skyline, creating a distinctive choice in the South’s dynamic, history-rich capital. Its a place where you can enjoy award-winning new American cuisine and relaxing spa treatments, all with unrivaled southern hospitality.

Charlie Kelly is a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) and currently serving as the Group Sales Manager at Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta. He is also presently a member of the Board of Directors for Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC). Charlie is a veteran in the hotel planning & sales industry, with nine years of experience under his belt. Prior to joining Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta, he previously spent 20 years in national account sales for Fortune 500 consumer companies.

In this episode of Inside the Winners’ Circle, Joyce & Charlie talks about Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta as a leader in sustainability, its commitment to going green and the different environmental initiatives they are advocating!

The Northeast Georgia Regional Solid Waste Management Authority (NGRSWMA), in cooperation with the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission (NEGRC), is hosting the Northeast Georgia Solid Waste Summit on Friday, January 27, 2012 at the Classic Center in downtown Athens. In this informational fair involving 10 different counties in Northeast GA, organizations, agencies and private companies involved in solid waste education, reduction, recycling, disposal, collection and land issues will be on hand to answer questions and distribute informational material.

In this episode of Inside the Winners’ Circle, Joyce is joined by 3 magnificent women deeply involved in the Solid Waste Management programs of their respective counties.

Suki Janssen is the Waste Reduction Administrator for Athens-Clarke County, Georgia.  Her duties include the contract management of the public/private recycling facility in Athens-Clarke County, a variety of waste reduction events, local green school program,  and more.  Prior to her position in Athens-Clarke County, she was a Program Coordinator for the Keep Georgia Beautiful program within the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.  She was responsible for the coordination of Winning Water:  Children’s Water Festival, Waste in Place teacher workshops and a variety of education initiatives for the KGB program.  She is a certified middle grades teacher, Georgia Recycling Coalition President for 2008-09, and Northeast Georgia Regional Solid Waste Management Authority board member.  She is married to Chris Janssen, a middle school math teacher in Oconee County, and lives with two dogs, two chinchillas and six snakes.

Elaine Oakes is originally from Thomasville, GA, but has resided in Monroe since 1974.  She learned about environmental stewardship at an early age from her father, who always stressed the importance of using our natural resources wisely.   She became a volunteer for Walton Clean and Beautiful in 1987 and was hired as a part-time director in 1989. The program is the Walton County  affiliate to keep America Beautiful, Inc whose mission is” to engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community environments”. Since that time, Elaine’s position has expanded to include managing the Walton County Recycling Center as well as the Keep Walton Beautiful (as it is now called) volunteer network.   The focus has expanded from litter prevention and recycling to also include beautification and education on non-point source pollution

Sandra Webb is the Executive Director of Keep Madison County Beautiful & Recycling Center. Her duties include educational classes in the schools and helping plan environmental programs for Madison County.

Claudia Aguas, Director of Catering & Convention Services at W Atlanta Downtown hotel, encourages you to know your industry & understand what you can do. Establish a forum where committees can be created & ideas can be shared.