The cycle of mentorship runs deep in Ally Glavas’ life. At just 34-years-old she is the President at Candor, one of OKC’s top marketing, public relations and social media agencies.
Glavas originally moved to the OKC metro from the east coast to attend OU, studying Political Science. After graduation she briefly left to live and work in Washington DC, nearly following in both of her parent’s footprints who worked in politics. Much to her surprise, she deeply missed Oklahoma and returned. Glavas explained, “The thing I love about here is people really care about one another. There’s this community investment in both philanthropy but also – people at the airport look you in the eye because they expect to know you and they smile and they are kind. We hear that when we have colleagues from out of town – ‘everyone is so nice here!’ The other part is that it is a great place for a young person to build a career.”
Just over nine years ago Glavas was working in public affairs with a side hustle as Karen Wicker’s, the founder of Candor, babysitter. The two women formed a friendship. Wicker saw Glavas’ work ethic and recruited her to the company. At the time, Glavas had never even written a press release. “She saw something in me which is pretty incredible. She has taught me so much about business and being true to yourself, and how to lead authentically,” said Glavas.
Glavas started as an account executive and moved up the company ladder ever since. Candor has won Agency of the Year multiple times from the PRSA-OKC and was an Outstanding Boutique Agency Finalist for PRWeek with clients including Devon Energy, WalMart, and Oklahoma Department of Human Services. Their most recent move will take the company to new heights.
In 2023 Salient Global, based out of Chicago, added Candor to its agency through a definitive purchase agreement. With the acquisition, Wicker joined the board of directors at Salient and Glavas became President at Candor, as well as a part of the leadership team for the new parent company. “The partnership means Candor can have nationwide impact. So I am really excited that we can amplify the work that’s being done in the heartland nationally. There is award winning work happening here and I think we can really increase our reach and introduce people to the power of Oklahoma City. That is my main focus – how do we continue to grow this place without losing all the magic about it that we love,” said Glavas.
Glavas is “passionate about women’s empowerment. Whether that means helping a young woman who’s out there looking for a job or trying to negotiate their salary for the first time.” She is on the Executive committee at Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma where she has been serving in a volunteer capacity for over a decade, having been a Girl Scout herself growing up. She is also involved in the chamber of commerce, The Downtown Club and PRSA.
Glavas intends to continue to tell the story of Oklahoma City, its local businesses and beyond – all while elevating and bringing others with bright futures along for the journey.
