Judy Smith - The REAL Olivia Pope of ABC7 Scandal

I have been a fan of ABC7's Scandal and the lovely Kerry Washington since the season started. However, meeting the real Olivia Pope, that would be JUDY SMITH, made the excitement much for enticing. I met Ms. Smith about 5 months ago at an event and was so happy to see how engaging, unassuming, delightful and unapologetic she was about her wit and intelligence.  

On Jan. 20th, Ken Coleman, technology giant and Special Advisor to Andreesen Horowitz, hosted a fireside chat with Judy Smith in their Menlo Park, CA office.  The chemistry between Ms. Smith and Ben Horowitz during the Q&A was the best I've seen in a long time.  When asked about how her career started, Judy shared that she had to be reminded by her childhood friend, affectionately known as 'beanhead', that her conflict resolution skills began at the age of 15 as she was always the neighborhood 'we can all work this out' negotiator. 

Judy's career in conflict resolution went through the roof right after her tenure as special assistant to the press secretary during President George H.W. Bush administration in 1991.  During her time with President Bush, some of her major work included PR guidance during the Clarence Thomas nomination, PR consulting during the Gulf War and dealing with US Kuwaiti relations.

While many saw the writing on the wall that President Bush would not be reelected, Judy stayed the course until the very end instead of leaving and looking for employment like many.  It was that tenacity, dedication and loyalty that lead to President Bush making several phone calls to key influentials in the political arena, sharing the stellar work Judy performed under his administration, that her phone began to ring constantly with requests for her services.  Since that time, Smith & Associates has been the most sought after crises management firm in the nation and beyond. 

Judy's most fascinating client was former Mayor Marion Barry.  According to Judy, even in light of his indiscretions and 6-month federal prison sentence for drug possession and use, Mr. Barry remained a 'people' person and very much connected to the community. Despite his history of political and legal controversies, Barry was a popular and influential figure in the local political scene.  After his release, he was elected to the Council of the District of Columbia in 1992, and ultimately returned to the mayoralty in 1994, serving from 1995 to 1999. 

Judy Smith's book, "Good Self, Bad Self: How to Bounce Back from Personal a Crisis is a must read.

 
And go!

Post by Glass House Communications.