You might say that the story of Kay Olin can be summed up as “a loss for politics, a big gain for radio.” Kay, a native of Florida, grew up in the political arena. Her father was a political lobbyist for over 30 years, and her grandfather represented Florida in both the State Senate and the House of Representatives. As a political science major at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Kay seemed destined for a career in politics as well . . . until she heard the call of media.

Fascinated by the workings of broadcast media, Kay worked briefly at a national television sales organization before accepting an Account Executive position at radio station WIVY-FM in Jacksonville – thus building the foundation for her ensuing career in radio.

“’Creativity, collaboration, consensus, courageous action;’ These are the words my grandfather emphasized for success in life, to his partners, his constituents and to me as a child—long before I knew what they really meant,” Kay remembers. “Those lessons have been invaluable to me in every stage and challenge life has presented.” And she learned those lessons well as just a few years later, at age 28, Kay was named General Manager of radio station WANM in Tallahassee. With this promotion, Kay became one of the first female general managers—not to mention one of the youngest—in the country.

After returning to Atlanta in 1979, Kay threw her hat into the national radio sales ring as an Account Executive at Torbet Radio and has never looked back.

She spent nearly 30 years at Interep, the nation’s largest independent sales and marketing company. During her impressive tenure with Interep, Kay initiated several key programs within the organization. In 1994, she founded and served as chairman of the company’s Quality Service Team—a program dedicated to ensuring the highest level of service for Interep’s client stations and the advertising agencies that it served. She was actively involved with Interep’s RAPPER (Radio Apprentice) Program, an intensive training program for people starting careers in radio.

In September 2007, Kay was named President of Interep’s Local Focus division, created to provide national service and representation for station groups in small to mid-sized markets.

After the closing of Interep in 2008, Kay re-opened Local Focus in November of that year. Its mission remains the same: to provide top-drawer representation to stations in small to mid-sized markets.

“By having an exclusive local focus, we present each market’s uniqueness and strengths to advertisers and agencies in ways that other firms cannot,” Kay says. “We state our client stations’ cases on the national level to make sure they get their fair share of ad dollars.”

Local Focus is growing rapidly, and the firm now reps more than 300 stations across 100 plus markets.

“There is a real need for the laser-like focus we provide to stations that are often ignored by national rep firms,” Kay states.

As Kay continues to build Local Focus, she remains deeply involved in industry affairs and no doubt will continue to pile up accolades.

While at Interep, Kay was an eight-time winner of the company’s prestigious Chairman’s Circle Award in recognition of exemplary service... but that is just the tip of the iceberg.

In 2007, she was named one of the Top 25 Professional Women to Watch in Atlanta by Atlanta Women Magazine. She also has been named one of AWRT’s 25 Women Who Lead in Sales and Management over the past four years.

Kay has served on the Board of Georgia Public Broadcasting and is an active member of the Atlanta Broadcast Advertising Club (ABAC). In 2008, she was honored with the ABAC's Industry Achievement Award as one of Atlanta’s Mover and Shakers.

Also in 2008, Kay was selected as one of Radio Ink’s 50 Most Influential Women in Radio and enjoys participating in the MIW mentoring program.

Kay is a member of the American Women in Radio & Television (AWRT) National Board and chair of its Education and Program Committee. She also is a founding member and the immediate past-president of the Atlanta chapter of AWRT.

She also serves on the Radio Advertising Bureau’s Sales Conference Planning Committee.

ay is a frequently requested speaker and panelist at industry events across the country… which should come as no surprise, given her impressive record of success and achievement.