SANDY RUSSO - Aviation Marketing Coordinator, RS&H
Sandy helps engineers, architects and planners create proposals that win over airport clients big and small through the winning combination of engagement, encouragement and storytelling. As an aviation marketing coordinator for RS&H, she spends a lot of time transforming technical language into attractive, catchy marketing deliverables that help tell the story behind why RS&H is the firm for the job. She’s resourceful, organized and always keeping it real about her hustle, home life, and journey as an outspoken, passionate and ambitious working mama.
The Basics:
Hometown: Jacksonville, FL
Current city: Jacksonville, FL
Alma mater: Florida State College at Jacksonville
Degree: B.S., Business Administration
Very first job: Summer Camp Counselor
Hustle: Aviation Marketing Coordinator, RS&H
The Interests:
Babe you admire and why?
My older sister, Grace. She has always known what she wanted to do with her life and while it wasn’t the easiest or the most profitable path, she stuck to it. From a very young age, she knew she wanted to be a teacher and/or work with children, especially those in low-income neighborhoods. She knew she didn’t want children of her own, and instead wanted to mentor kids who were underserved in the community. She’s been a counselor for a local elementary school for quite some time now, and I love visiting her at work. All “her” children give her hugs and shout when they see her. She wears tutus and glitter on Fridays for “Princess Grace Day” and encourages children through special reading classes, emotional intelligence projects, and just downright silliness. Growing up, many people discouraged her from this career because she was “too smart to be a teacher”. She graduated high school at the top of her class and was accepted to a very prestigious state college. However, Grace was adamant. I admire her heart for her community, her deep understanding of who she is, and that she stuck to her guns when she knew what she wanted. I love that other children get to share the passion, dedication, and magic that is Princess Grace.
Go-to coffee order and/or adult beverage?
Mich Ultra. I can’t help it. I will probably end up buried with a 12-pack of it. I can go to as many hip breweries all across the country, I can try every fancy mixed vodka drink, but there is NOTHING quite like a cold canned Ultra.
What’s something most don’t know about you?
I have TERRIBLE phone anxiety. I’d rather send up smoke signals than call someone on the phone—a trait that has caused me a lot of heartache in my professional career. I need to take my own advice here, but just pick up the phone. When something isn’t clear, it's just easier than text or email.
The Hustle:
Tell us about your hustle.
As an Aviation Marketing Coordinator for RS&H, I help engineers, architects, and planners create proposals that win over airport clients. Need new runway lighting? I’m your gal. Updates to security on baggage claim? I can do that, too. I am not a technical writer—I don’t have a complete understanding of the science that goes into the projects we pursue, but I have enough knowledge of architecture, engineering, and construction (A/E/C) to get by writing about it. On paper, we produce winning proposals. In reality, we wrangle busy project managers, psychoanalyze airport clients, transform boring content into catchy graphics, decipher outdated legal forms, and wear as many hats as we can possibly fit onto our heads in one day. A huge part of the job description is resourcefulness. No proposal requirements are ever the same, and knowing where to get or how to produce the information needed will get you far. I love that about my position. Each pursuit is a month-long scavenger hunt. Some parts of the hunt are harder to get than others, but in the end, I produce a beautiful product with all the components requested. I’m also not client-facing, unlike many marketing professionals. I don’t often get the recognition for winning a pursuit from anyone other than my own team. It can be a little discouraging to be anonymous to the people you’re working to win over but in the end, only my team can relate to the hard work and late nights that go into our proposals. I can also pretty much wear what I want and work from wherever I want, so hey. Anonymity has its benefits!
What does your typical workday look like? Which various ‘hats’ do you wear throughout the day?
The first requirement of my day is absolutely always coffee—I cannot function without it. Most days, I work from our headquarters and check in with the rest of my team in the morning. The company is spread throughout the U.S., so some of those check-ins are digital, but the marketing team is incredibly close (shared trauma, I think… kidding…). I’ll check my emails and my calendars and block out sections of time each day for tasks. Over my career, I’ve found that dedicating specific times on your calendar to your different job functions absolutely increases productivity. I’ll close down my email and focus only on writing, I’ll tweak a few graphics, I’ll sit in on a brainstorming meeting, I’ll run around the building looking for the right contact, but the times I set aside for each are sacred. A few times a week, I will lead group calls with project managers and staff to go over the status of a proposal and to set goals. Because I’m often writing proposals for airports and with project managers that are across the country, we rely heavily on digital conference calls to complete the work. Many project managers I work with daily, I’ve never met in person! At the end of each day, I make a list of the tasks I need to complete the next day in my calendar. As a Type A personality, to-do lists and goals are my best friend. I feel like each day is easier to tackle with attainable goals laid out, rather than looking at the daunting task of an entire proposal and panicking.
What led you to the A/E/C side of marketing? How about the aviation industry?
When I was in middle school, my stay-at-home mom decided to take on a part time job. A friend in the neighborhood owned a construction company and offered her a reception job for the small firm. At her request, I’d spend my summers helping file away project folders and update computer databases. I found it insanely boring. I couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to work in an office. I thought I’d end up in a creative field. I went to college for theatre and was an avid writer and storyteller. Once I actually tested out the waters of a creative field, though, I chickened out. I didn’t like the constant rejection, I hated the lack of structure, and I craved the comfort of a 9-5. I worked my way from reception at an architecture firm to accounting at an environmental engineering firm. There were a few other A/E/C jobs along the way, but I eventually landed an interview as an Aviation Marketing Coordinator. I had no idea what it entailed and the job description absolutely terrified me. What I found was that the position was a perfect mix of my need for structure and my creative nature. I get to be theatrical, to tell stories, but I have to do so within the bounds of corporate branding, the nature of the project, and the needs of the client. I feel creatively fulfilled in an industry that doesn’t look too creative from the outside. Not to mention, getting to know the inner workings of airports is REALLY cool.
Have you always had an affinity for storytelling?
Always. Often, when my folks would have guests over, they’d just sit in the living room and let me run my mouth, telling story after story about the time I was attacked by a turkey, or the time I got struck by lightning, or the time I was stung by a caterpillar. My mom often said I’d probably end up as a stand-up comedian (or in a bubble, considering how many bizarre injuries I’d amassed). I have always loved making people laugh and I love feeling connected to others. Some might see it as a love of attention, and sure, that is absolutely true. But I also see it as a love of shared experiences. In my work, it presents itself as exactly that. I love helping project managers know that their pursuit is important to both their career and to the airport we’re pitching. Showing them that I see their vision for a project and I want to help tell their story is an important way to guarantee their buy-in for the aspects of the proposal they need to complete. When a project manager does not feel connected to the proposal or like you don’t care about their input to the final product, they are much less likely to hit their deadlines on time. Engage, encourage, tell the story. That’s the recipe for a winning pursuit!
What’s your approach to staying organized in such a multifaceted line of work?
Organization has always been my strong point. I insist on keeping handwritten calendars and lists and using a combination of digital task managers and those lists to stay on top of proposals. I have always been a tiny bit of an overachiever in that realm. In fact, you could say organization is one of the only things I REALLY excel at. Everything else is just resourcefulness!
How was your transition from maternity leave back to office life (and being a working mom in general?)
Balancing a deadline-based position, breastfeeding, missing my child, and my hormones was not an easy task. I went back to work two months after my daughter was born, and was extremely lucky to have the support of a stay-at-home-dad for our daughter for the first several months I was back—his constant photo updates helped for the first few weeks. Eventually, Frankie (our daughter) went to daycare and he returned to work. There were days I literally lost my breastmilk and pump during an office move (the moving company literally moved the fridge without permission), there were unkind comments from other staff members, and of course, the constant mom guilt that I was placing more emphasis on my career than my daughter. My manager is a mother herself and was extremely encouraging and understanding during my transition. After a year of being a working mama, I’ve found that I am still me. My identity was not wiped out when I gave birth. Frankie changed my life immeasurably, but I am still very much Sandy. I still curse like a sailor, I still love going to the gym, I still listen to old emo music, I still love crappy beer, and I still love my career. I am still me, and that included coming back to work. Without acknowledging that I am a multi-faceted person and not ONLY a mom, I think I’d have lost it the first year.
How have your past professional and academic experiences and lessons prepared you for the work you do today? How have they not prepared you?
Ironically, the largest part of my education that prepared me for my career was the administrative hassle. It always felt like each new semester was a new challenge with grants, financial aid, scholarships, and credits. Figuring out all the details, making frantic calls, finding the right person to speak with translates almost exactly into what my job description is now. While the business writing classes were interesting and helpful, the practical lessons of making college HAPPEN ended up being more relevant.
What would you say is your biggest career milestone to date and why?
Recently, I was invited to join SMPS, a professional marketing organization, and approved to attend their national 2020 conference in Austin, Texas. The feeling of having my superiors invest in my education and professional development cannot be matched. I feel so valued and thankful for the opportunities this position affords me, especially considering that I was not technically qualified for this position AT ALL when I interviewed. I knew I loved the position I fell into, but the confirmation from my superiors was a huge bump in my confidence and professional pride.
How would you say being a woman has affected your professional experience? What can we do to create more equal, uplifting (and well-paying!) spaces for women in your industry?
Starting out in the A/E/C world as a 20 year-old female is rough. I spent probably my first ten years as the sole “office lady” in small construction offices, responsible for everything from coffee to payroll and bids. I had little to no time off ever, because if I was out of the office, the administrative duties of the day simply did not get done. Throw in the general “good ol boy” attitude that many of these small companies in the south are known for, and the working environment wasn’t always pretty. As I changed positions within the industry and joined larger and larger firms, I found a woman at each company that I tried to learn all that I could from. These women were and are fair, firm, and brilliant. They were also often underpaid because of their gender and the industry we work in. Each of them taught me extremely valuable lessons in attitude, time management, ownership of my work, and balancing my personal life with my duties. I hope that eventually, I will be the one helping a young woman in our field learn the ropes of working in a male-dominated industry. As women in the workplace, take time to answer questions from younger associates. It can feel like their questions are “no-brainers”, but many new associates at my company are straight out of college and have never even held a full-time position before. I always try and remember that while it may be second nature to me, I had a first job once, too. Kindness and empathy go a long way in an office community, especially to young women.
What’s the gender ratio like in your industry? Do you see it evolving? Why or why not?
For the most part, the technical professionals are males and the marketing department is female. However, I’ve been so excited to meet many young women in the engineering and architecture departments across my agency during college recruitment week and during special women’s empowerment networking opportunities in the company. The shift is happening. It's a slow process because becoming a technical professional does take a significant amount of time, but it is absolutely a pleasure to work with more women.
Are you involved with any other careers, side projects or organizations?
In order to cover costs for IVF, I started a little side business called One Good Fern and spent a few years teaching DIY Macrame Plant Hanger classes in local breweries and restaurants. I laugh that my daughter is crowd-sourced from all the women that came to my classes and supported our desire to have a child. Once I was pregnant, the strain of running a small business, a full-time career, and growing a human got to be difficult to balance, so I hung up my macrame cord. I hope to teach classes again one day, but for now, I’m relishing my new job title of mama.
Career and/or life advice for other babes?
Apply for your dream job, even if you are not qualified. I did, my supervisor took a chance on me, I taught myself the needed programs, learned the ropes, and now I’m living out my dream. Apply, apply, apply. You never know who is on the other end of the application!
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