Alison Ritter, Odney’s senior public relations specialist has years of experience putting her best foot forward. Every one of those steps comes with a work ethic companies scramble for, and she comes by it honestly.
When asked what inspires her in her work, Alison says, “My grandma Marie. I had her write down and sign something she told me when I first got hired by the state, ‘Put your head down and go to work. Don't let them regret for a moment that they hired you.’ It's framed next to a picture of her in my office. She had a very successful career in state government at a time when most women didn't. She was a trailblazer, and those words are worth listening to.”
Her grandmother worked on the desk for an Iowa state Senator, then worked for the director of the state liquor commission in Iowa. She became the secretary to the director of the Metro Waste Authority, which oversees waste management in the greater Des Moines area, and eventually became the first ever woman director of the Metro Waste Authority. She held that position for many years, even retiring and then going back for a few more years. Marie was the breadwinner for her family at a time when women weren’t.
Alison followed in her footsteps working for state government when she became PIO for the North Dakota oil & gas division from 2011 to 2018 during the height of the Bakken oil boom. The connections and knowledge she gained in her former position are important for the work she’s done over the last six years at Odney.
If you know Alison, you know she has a big personality that is perfectly suited to public relations. As she says, “I'm a people person. I've always been outgoing so public relations was a natural fit." Another reason she is so successful is the large network of contacts she’s developed throughout her career. Connecting people isn’t easy, but Alison has a knack for putting the work in and naturally creating solid relationships. In her words, “Public relations is about connecting people. When I get asked what it is that I do, I say I get the newsmakers to the news tellers and people understand that.”
The thing Alison likes most about her job is knowing that Odney is behind many of the big projects going on in North Dakota. “We do important work that saves lives, saves jobs, and has even helped save communities. It's very rewarding to know the work we do at Odney matters and has a positive impact on the lives of so many.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. No really, we couldn’t. That’s why she’s the senior public relations specialist.