Associate members play a valuable role within the Federation — through the connections they make, the resources they provide, and the leadership they showcase to better the home-building industry. They are not only able to bring their own professional experience to the table, but are able to share the information they gather as being active members in NAHB with others in their fields as well to help strengthen the home-building community.
“My experiences in the Federation have made me more valuable in my role at work,” stated Kelly Ann Zuccarelli, senior vice president and National Builder and Condominium Program manager at Wells Fargo. “By taking the time to understand what’s important to builders and what impacts their business provides me an opportunity to share it with my colleagues at Wells Fargo.”
As part of NAHB’s celebration of Professional Women in Building (PWB) Week, we asked three female Associate leaders in the Federation about their leadership journeys and how they have shaped their experiences within NAHB.
In addition to her leadership role at Wells Fargo, Zuccarelli chairs NAHB’s National Sales and Marketing Council. Her NAHB leadership experience began on committees and subcommittees at her local HBA, Shore Builders Association of Central New Jersey, followed by similar experiences at the state level with the New Jersey Builders Association (NJBA). She then served as the New Jersey Associate Vice Chair, which offered her an opportunity to be a part of the strategic planning process for NAHB — an experience she found to be personally rewarding.
“Being a part of that is a tremendous education in the innerworkings and operational workings of the Federation,” she shared.
Judy Dinelle, building ambassador for 84 Lumber and Associate Members Committee chair, and Tifanee McCall, account executive at Residential Warranty Company, LLC and Building Systems Councils (BSC) chair, both saw an opportunity to get involved at the national council level and grow within their respective areas.
McCall began as a subcommittee chair within the BSC, where she was encouraged by the board of trustees to fill various roles within the councils, including chair of the Building Systems Housing Summit and membership and communications subcommittee. She enjoys working with the BSC to help raise awareness around the off-site construction industry, and provide education to fellow and prospective members.
As only the second female chair of the BSC, McCall has eagerly watched more women become involved in the councils.
“When I first joined the BSC, the amount of women in the council was extremely limited, so it’s been fantastic to watch the number of women in the council grow,” she noted. “It’s also been helpful to meet other women in NAHB and learn from them, and admire their strengths and bring them back to the council.”
One council that is no stranger to female leadership is the Professional Women in Building (PWB) Council, where Dinelle began her leadership journey and moved up the ladder to become chair in 2018.
“It took years,” she noted. “I wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing — stepping into something and being able to define it, and really putting my whole heart and soul into it.”
Dinelle was honored as PWB’s Woman of the Year in 2019 for her passion and dedication to the industry. One of her proudest moments was the installation of PWB, which had previously been an affiliate 501(c)3 organization, as an official NAHB council in 2014.
“To see the whole fruition of everything we went through and see where the council has gone — it’s larger than life right now,” she shared.
Both Dinelle and Zuccarelli are charter members of the PWB Councils at their respective local HBAs — Asheville (N.C.) HBA and Shore Builders Association of Central New Jersey — and credit their fellow members and HBA staff with supporting and encouraging their leadership journeys. Dinelle continues to remain active at the local and state levels, in addition to her role on the Associate Members Committee, and enjoys the relationships she has built across the Federation.
“The most important part of being a member for me is the love of your industry and being a part of making people’s dreams of homeownership come true,” she stated. “We’re all in this together.”
Thank you to the sponsors of Associate Member Appreciation Month: 84 Lumber, Whirlpool Corporation and Dominion Energy.
Be sure to highlight female members from your area of the Federation on an NAHB social media channel, using the hashtags #PWBProud and #PWBweek2020.
