Terri Marranzino-Ray shares advice on Women in Public Power panel

When it comes to looking for inspiration for the approximately three dozen employees of the Support Services team at Tri-State, Vice President Terri Marranzino-Ray tells her staff to look no further than to Former Blue Angels pilot and motivational speaker John Foley.

“Foley tells us that you must first have a mindset of ‘glad to be here.’ It’s about being grateful and appreciative of the opportunity to work at Tri-State, and then bringing that mindset to create operational excellence,” Marranzino-Ray said. “We are glad to be here at Tri-State, to be a part of the team. We try to keep a positive mind-set and be forward-thinking, and we are behind the scenes making sure everything works so that Tri-State can operate safely and efficiently. We strive to find a way to get it done.”

Marranzino-Ray – who has been with Tri-State for 28 years, including the last three and half as vice president – oversees the day-to-day operations of fleet, facilities, physical security, business continuity/resilience, and administrative services. This includes more than 950 fleet vehicles, ranging in size from pool cars to the custom-built, Bronto Skylift aerial platform (which can reach up to 169 feet in the air). She and her staff also manage Tri-State’s 26 field facilities, including the headquarters in Westminster, Colo., critical back-up control facilities, and the company airplane hangar at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield, Colo.

Tri-State’s Vice President for Support Services Terri Marranzino-Ray, second from the right, address the Northwest Public Power Association’s Women in Public Power (WIPP) conference in July.

Managing these areas of the company requires the ability to create and maintain positive working relationships/partnerships both inside and outside of Tri-State. Strong knowledge of local, state and federal laws, rules and regulations also is critical to the success of the team.

For Marranzino-Ray personally, she says that not a day has gone by that she hasn’t been glad to be here, since that first day with Tri-State as administrative assistant in 1996 in the procurement and vehicle fleet department. At the Northwest Public Power Association’s Women in Public Power (WIPP) conference in July, she spoke as part of the panel, “Breaking Ground: Women Leading Ops Teams,” sharing her experiences with Tri-State, and the importance of putting yourself out there and taking on new challenges where you know you can make a positive difference.

Marranzino-Ray told attendees that she starts each day with a positive mindset and looks at challenges as opportunities to support Tri-State, the membership and her staff. She said it has not always been easy, and that when she first started in support service management more than two decades ago, it took about six months to gain the trust and respect of the field personnel.

“My whole career has been in a man’s world, so it’s about gaining trust and respect as woman. Set your goals on what you want to do, and then work hard,” Marranzino-Ray said. “I believe that you are always interviewing for your next job, in the way you talk to people, the way you treat people, the way that you work with them. I never expect my team to do something I have not done, or that I would not be willing to do alongside of them. No matter what your job entails, take pride in what you do, and do it with gratitude and humility to the very best of your ability.”

A native of Broomfield, Colo., Marranzino-Ray shared that overseeing a large cooperative fleet for Tri-State is not necessarily by accident. She said she has always had a strong interest in vehicles from a young age, and her passion includes her current work with her son on restoring a 1953 Chevy truck.

In closing, Marranzino-Ray said, “I am grateful for the continued opportunity to lead such an amazing team of people that continually embrace the #gladtobehere attitude and mindset. Each member of support services is a vital spoke in the wheel that continually turns in support of this great organization.”

Contributor:

Mark Stutz