2025 Summit Speakers
Ashley Ritteman
My passion for rail networks began as a graduate student studying the inland flows of international containers. I recognized an opportunity to reduce costs for importers while driving capacity into the hands of exporters, and that vision has since grown into Valor Victoria—a company built to reshape intermodal logistics. As CEO and co-founder, I’m privileged to lead an incredible team committed to optimizing supply chain efficiency and solving industry-wide challenges.
I spend my time doing what I love most:
- Developing new business opportunities that drive sustainable growth
- Understanding customer and vendor needs to shape innovative solutions
- Empowering our team to make a real impact in the logistics and rail industry
Beyond my professional life, my heart is with my family. My husband, Thomas, and I are raising two beautiful children while also pursuing his lifelong dream of operating a first-generation grain farm—a true embodiment of the American dream. Meghan Marsden and I founded Valor Victoria with a shared belief: “You can have it all”—a thriving business and a fulfilling family life—with the right team and support system.
Elizabeth Phares Oren
Elizabeth Phares Oren, client success director for the North Dakota Women’s Business Center, is a subject matter expert when it comes to small business and is passionate about helping women business owners grow. Whether it is boosting their confidence or coaching them through the steps of entrepreneurship, she prides herself on meeting people where they are and connecting them to the resources they need to move to the next level.
Emily brooks
Jade Scherr
Jade Scherr is the founder and CEO of HexaHive, a marketing agency she started in 2019. Under her leadership, HexaHive has been named a Top 10 Employer in Bismarck-Mandan for three straight years and won awards like Women-Owned Business of the Year. Jade and her team work with a wide range of clients—from large corporations to small family businesses—helping them grow with smart marketing strategies. She builds a team culture focused on creativity, strong relationships, and getting results. Thanks to this approach, HexaHive is known as both a reliable community partner and a leader in helping businesses reach their goals.
Kathy Cochran
JKathy Cochran is a founding partner of Elevate2 Consulting, LLC, an organization that provides management coaching and advisory services. She is interested in advocating for women entrepreneurs and working to break down systemic processes and practices to better support women. As a grandmother, herself, Kathy is looking to create generational change for women in business.
Marlo Anderson
Melissa Miranda
Growing up on a dairy farm, Step By Step Accounting owner Melissa L. Miranda learned the principles of hard work, persistence, and planning. Before even attending college, she saw first hand the importance of cash-flow planning and organized record-keeping on the farm with her own dairy animals in 4-H and FFA.
She is a proud graduate of North Dakota State University in Fargo, North Dakota, where she completed a double major, studying both accounting and business administration. Melissa saw the need for service-oriented, teaching-based accounting and advisory services, primarily geared towards small businesses and eventually brought these principles into her own business, which she named Step By Step Accounting.
Melissa’s mission is to help small business owners understand their finances and achieve their goals as she knows the impact that strong businesses have on communities and families.
In her personal time, Melissa enjoys spending time with her family and reading a good book. She also loves visiting family in Brazil, where she lived for two years.
Michelle Worner Kommer
Michelle Kommer is the founder and owner of HighRoad Partners, LLC. HighRoad Partners offers payroll, HR and benefits support to employers in the Midwest, to fill a gap that often exists for small business that are on the run, growing and scaling their own operation. HighRoad Partners is proud to partner with small companies to achieve success, offering a breadth of HR competence and experience, along with the HR technology of a large company, at a reasonable price.
In the four years preceding the launch of her business in 2020, Michelle responded to an invitation from North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum to leave a career in the private sector for an exciting opportunity to join, learn, lead, and be a change maker as a public servant. Upon his taking office, the Governor appointed Michelle to serve the citizens of North Dakota in his cabinet as Commissioner of Labor. In 2019, Governor Burgum invited Michelle to take on the challenge of serving as the state’s Commissioner of Commerce. In that role, she was responsible for leading efforts to diversify the economy, recruit visitors and new residents, anticipate and address workforce demands, and help equip North Dakota communities for today’s changing environment, while assisting their efforts in preparing for tomorrow’s opportunities.
Prior to her tour in public service, Michelle worked for more than 20 years in the private sector, with her career path including positions leading human resource, operational and legal functions in the financial services, health insurance and energy/manufacturing industries. She is a licensed attorney, and her practice includes contract negotiation and management, labor and employment matters, and corporate governance. Her executive experience includes leadership of the strategic planning, human resources, project management, information technology, operations, and legal functions. She is a self-professed “process geek”.
Michelle has served on numerous public, private and nonprofit boards and is a passionate advocate for child welfare in North Dakota, both as a foster and adoptive parent. Responding to a need for adoptive parents for North Dakota foster children, Michelle founded the North Dakota Heart Gallery in 2007 and continues to serve on the board today.
Michelle’s passion, after many years of research, observation, and personal experience, is writing and speaking about a unique aspect of workplace interactions – healthy female relationships at work. Check out her TEDx Fargo!
Michelle received her undergraduate degree from Mayville State University, her master’s degree from the University of Mary and her law degree from the University of North Dakota School of Law.
Michelle is proud of her three daughters (two adult) who are strong and smart, each following their own path. She couldn’t live without her two and a half dogs (one is very chubby), and enjoys travel, reading, and a new-ish side hustle teaching pilates at a local gym.
Sandi Luck
For the last 18 years, Sandi Luck has been a serial entrepreneur. She is the founder and owner of 14 companies in the Midwest (100% woman owned): 8 Bully Brew Coffee Houses (Grand Forks, East Grand Forks, Hallock, Park River, Warren, McIntosh, Grand Forks AFB, and Fargo), the ND Coffee Roastery (a large manufacturing warehouse where the coffee beans are roasted and packaged for not only Bully Brew Coffee but several other coffee shops in the Midwest), an AIRBNB called Nora’s Place, The Board Room Coffee & Taphouse and she is a real estate investor.
Sydney Boschert
Founder of Bit Blossom Software, Sydney is a passionate software engineer with a background in data science, mathematics, and chemistry. Sydney’s career spans roles in UX leadership, full-stack development, and software engineering at industry-leading companies. Known for her ability to translate complex technical challenges into intuitive solutions, Sydney leads Bit Blossom Software with a unique blend of technical expertise and a people-first mindset.
