Who are you?
I am Whitney Bryant, Public Relations Specialist at South Plains Electric Cooperative.
How long have you worked with cooperatives?
I am celebrating my 10th year at South Plains Electric Cooperative.
Describe your role.
As Public Relations Specialist, I do a variety of tasks. I manage all our social media channels and produce all the content for them. My favorite content to create are the videos. I love concept planning, shooting and editing. In addition, I manage our Operation Round Up program which also means I manage our scholarship, teacher mini-grant and community grant programs. I am the administrator of our Operation Round Up Employee Fund. In addition, I help create videos for our employee meetings, broadcast stations, etc. I am responsible for writing/sending press releases and managing media requests. I help keep up with our broadcast advertising and radio spots. I created our intranet site for employees and work to keep it updated. I do various other tasks, such as keep up with the CoBank matching grant program and help wherever I am needed.
What do you enjoy about working with cooperatives?
Working with cooperatives is a serious blessing that many in other industries will never understand. Coming from the corporate world, I really understand just how great it is to work for a local cooperative. I love the work culture and my coworkers. We are family. I appreciate how our board takes care of us as employees. I also just love the collaboration between cooperatives. I know my cooperative family is always willing to share ideas, projects and advice. CCA is a testament to this collaboration.
When did you join CCA? Why?
I joined CCA shortly after starting at SPEC in 2014. My boss, Lynn Simmons, was a long-time CCA member and really communicated the benefit of this group and encouraged me to join.
Did anything surprise you about CCA upon joining?
I think the biggest surprise came when I attended my first CCA Institute. The surprise was just how much we can learn from one another even if we aren’t at the same type of cooperative. I remember sitting through a session about crisis communication and the cooperative speaking was a dairy cooperative, but the lessons learned could so easily transfer to an electric cooperative!
How has CCA supported you in your career?
Attending training (CCA Institute and the Professional Development Workshops) has supported me by giving me training and development opportunities that are unmatched. It has also given me the opportunity to connect with others both in the electric cooperative world and new friends outside the electric industry.
What are your hobbies and interests?
I love being with my family. Our favorite thing to do as a family is travel. We love Disney and any place we can take our dog, Luigi, with us. My daughter, Kennedy (9), keeps me busy with all her extracurricular activities, and I love every second of it!
Do you have a “bucket list”? What are some of the things on that list?
My “bucket list” is really just made up of places where I would like to travel. I want to take my daughter to NYC around Christmas. I also would love to go to Hawaii and back to Europe.
Give us something about yourself that is surprising or that most people don’t know.
- I was the mascot in high school (mustang).
- I love reality TV.
- I would love to live in Florida or California. I need to be closer to water.
- If I could meet one person, I would choose Snoop Dogg. I absolutely love him.
What advice would you give to professional communicators just starting their careers?
Take advantage of training and development opportunities given to you; you should never stop learning. Do your best and know that is all you can do!
Email Whitney here
