Employee Spotlight: Rian Martinsen

In the two years since Rian started here, she has always shown that she cares deeply for the employees of O’Brien, both mentally and physically. She is someone who has created such an environment of trust, you can always go to her without fear of judgement. She never makes you feel like your questions are stupid, and is always willing to share her knowledge and expertise. We are very fortunate to benefit from her decades of construction industry and consulting experience, and all the wisdom that she has gained along the way.

And even though Rian has such a wealth of knowledge and experience, she is always looking to learn more, and to hear from us. She has implemented a safety committee at O’Brien where we all collaborate, bring her ideas and questions, and decide together on what topics and information to bring to the rest of the company. She also speaks at our superintendents meeting biweekly, has an open forum to let others ask questions, and is always looking to make our safety program better.

In the time Rian has been with O’Brien, she has completely revamped and overhauled our safety program, implementing multiple new policies and systems that we didn’t have before, and made all of our existing policies better. As a trainer, she has brought us so much flexibility, and she always applies that training directly to what we are actively doing or working on. She really tailors it to our company and the specifics of what we need. Plus, she can reinforce that training throughout the year by going to our jobsites and reviewing our policies and best practices. I am looking forward to seeing what great changes her experience brings to us next.

The future is bright with Rian on our team. I see her continuing to increase our safety scores and reduce our accidents and incidents. I see her growing and developing our company culture to include our core values and implementing innovative ideas that will keep us at the forefront of the of the construction industry.

– Stephanie Phillips, Operations Coordinator

Rian volunteering at the Newport Seafood and Wine Festival

Rian, two of her daughters, her niece, and Remi the pup of course!

The band playing at Myril Wine Bar.

Q&A with Rian

Growing up, construction was a central part of my life. My grandfather was a housebuilder who made a significant impact on my hometown by building numerous homes. This legacy extended to my family, with two uncles and a brother becoming contractors. My dad further inspired me by building our beautiful house almost entirely on his own, with the exception of the foundation and occasional help from family and friends.

From a young age, I found immense value in working with my hands. There’s something uniquely rewarding about transforming a pile of raw materials into something beautiful and functional. This hands-on experience has taught me the importance of craftsmanship and the satisfaction of seeing a project through from start to finish. The construction industry allows me to combine my passion for building with the opportunity to continue my family’s legacy by being a small part of creating enduring and meaningful structures.

My dad worked most of his life in the petroleum industry where he witnessed a great deal of needless loss, pain, and suffering. He instilled in me the importance of being safe from a very young age. When I got out of the Navy, I became an Advanced EMT and there I saw all that same loss, pain, and suffering. As a Safety Professional I love changing perspectives about what it means to be safe and to go home healthy at the end of the day. I also love building relationships and being a trusted advisor, mentor, teacher, and coach. I enjoy the challenges that come from working in an evolving industry and collaborating with the team to find solutions.

I went to work for a contractor, I started as the Wyoming Safety Manager and became the Corporate Safety Manager and Education and Training Manager. The company had seven high risk revenue streams: commercial electrical, light industrial construction, heavy industrial construction, aggregate hauling, tower crew, petroleum instrumentation, and utility and excavation. The company had a very high MOD rate due to a very high rate of injuries. There were no formal safety meetings, onsite safety presence was non-existent, the safety program was minimal at best, and leadership was safety aloof. They were losing market share and were having difficulties getting contracts. I put a great deal of safety incentives and formal training in place and the MOD rate fell below one (which is the goal) and we were able to achieve two years without a Loss Time Accident, instead of having three or four a year.

I work out of the Newport office. I first came to Newport in 1999 on a road trip with friends and immediately fell in love with the cute little coastal town. I dreamt of living here someday, but I had no idea how it could possibly happen. 20 years later, in 2019, I vied for a position with the consulting company I was working for as the Coast Area Manager and chose Newport as my homebase. If I were to list everything I love about where I live, I could fill a book! I truly love the outdoor hobbies that I can enjoy year-round, the community is absolutely wonderful, and of course… the OCEAN!!

I love to kayak on Beaver Creek, go agate hunting at several beaches, tide pooling at Seal Rock and Yaquina Lighthouse is amazing, summer camping on the Alsea River offers a break from the chilly coastal air, and walking along the Bayfront is charming and educational. My favorite food places are Myril (owned by one of my friends from Utah), Nye Beach Cafe, and the best burgers are at The Barge Inn & Tavern.

The amount of experience and knowledge this team has is nothing short of amazing! I don’t like to solve problems; I prefer to let the team come up with solutions and I love coaching them through the process. I also get to learn more about my teammates and other alternatives as well. I love the ingenuity and innovation that comes from the process, and I’m humbled to be a catalyst for collaboration, growth, and empowerment.

I’ve had a difficult personal challenge this year and I will say that I have the best friend community that I’ve ever had in my life! They tucked me under their collective wings and took me on several adventures and trips, building great memories and helping me get my feet back under me, healthily. It culminated in October when a group of friends invited me to go to Mexico with them where I developed new friendships and deepened others while enjoying some much-needed sun and exploring a beautiful area on the Baja Peninsula.

O’Brien is a unique company. Few construction companies have the core values of Trust, Collaboration, and Innovation, if they have core values at all. Wherever you came from, whatever you’ve done previously, when you get here, know that our culture is unique and this is your opportunity to learn, grow, and shake off the old way of doing things.