Susan Richardson Williams
Susan Williams Public Affairs Consulting
Susan Richardson Williams has spent 35 years in the public and private sector working primarily in the government and community relations arenas and is well-known throughout the region as a leader in public affairs and business.
In addition to years of expertise, Susan brings her relationships within government, industry, and the media to her current clients, which include URS Corporation, The Energy Foundation, America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA), Sustainable Future, LLC, Strata-G, Merit Construction, Northeast Knox Utility District and the Utilities Management Federation.
Prior to launching SRW & Associates, Susan managed the Knoxville office of The Ingram Group, a statewide public relations firm. She has been in the Cabinet of two Governors and on the staff of a third. She was a Tennessee press representative for a U.S. Senator and was elected Chair of the Tennessee Republican Party. Williams also served for eight years as Associate Athletics Director with the University of Tennessee Lady Vols.
In 2006, Susan was nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate as a member of the Tennessee Valley Authority Board of Directors. During her term, she led efforts to establish a new land policy for TVA which resulted in her being named “Land Conservationist of the Year” by the Tennessee Wildlife Federation.
She also served 12 years on the University of Tennessee’s Board of Trustees where she chaired the Development and Outreach Committee, served on the Executive Committee and was on the Presidential Search team. She is currently president of the East Tennessee Historical Society, a board member of the Knox Area Chamber Partnership, a member of the Advisory Board of the Legacy Parks Foundation, a member of the Executive Women’s Association, and a former board member of the Knoxville Opera Company, and alumnus of Leadership Knoxville. Susan is also a regular panelist on WBIR-TV’s “Inside Tennessee,” a weekly political insiders’ television show and appears regularly on local radio talk shows as a commentator.
Susan was recognized by the Knoxville YWCA as a finalist in the Business and Government category in their “Tribute to Women”, 2007, and was also named by the Girl Scouts as a “Woman of Achievment” in 2010. She was ranked among “Tennessee’s 100 Most Powerful People” by “Business Tennessee” magazine in 2007 and 2008.
Susan grew up in Savannah, Tennessee and holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee. She is married to Dick Williams of Greeneville, and has three grown children. She and Dick are currently raising their 10-year-old grandson, Jordan. In her spare time, Susan enjoys the beach, golf, reading and politics.