Sanford Williams has been named director of the FCC's Office of Communications Business Opportunities (OCBO) by FCC chairman Ajit Pai.
Williams has been acting director of the office, which is the principal advisor to the chairman and commissioners on policies affecting diverse groups—women, small businesses and minorities. It also coordinates with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
“The FCC plays an important role in encouraging a communications industry in which small businesses, including minority- and women-owned businesses, thrive,” said Pai. “While it is not our place to dictate market outcomes, there are productive ways that this agency can connect people, foster competition, and establish policies that support a market that reflects America’s diversity. I’m pleased Sanford has agreed to continue to lead this work; I value his counsel in ensuring that these issues are included in our policy thinking.”
Williams has been an attorney with the FCC since 1999. Before that he was with Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice and a professor at Augusta State University.
