Richard A. Oden, Chairman & CEO

Rockdale County voters elected Richard A. Oden to serve as Chairman of the Board of Commissioners for his first four-year term beginning in January 2009.

As Chairman, Oden presides over commission meetings, is the chief executive officer of the county government and generally supervises, directs and controls all the administration matters of the county.
Oden is a successful businessman with more 30 years of corporate management experience and 15 years of small business ownership. Through it all, Oden has served his community as an advocate for the people and a church leader.

Oden currently serves on the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC). He is a member of ARC’s Executive Committee and serves on the Transportation and Air Quality Committee, the Budget and Review Committee and on the Environment and Land Use Committee. He serves as Vice-Chairman of ARC’s Policy Committee. Additionally, Oden is a member of the Transit Implementation Board, a partnership created to establish and maintain a seamless, integrated transit network for the Atlanta region. The Transit Planning Board was created by a joint resolution of the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) and the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA). In May of 2010, he was appointed Chairman of the Economic Development and Transportation Policy Committee of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG), which represents all 159 counties in Georgia. He also is a member of the Gwinnett Rockdale Newton (GRN) Community Service Board and the Georgia Veterans Memorial Park Foundation.

Oden was appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue in February 2010 to the Public Defender Supervisory Panel for the Rockdale Judicial Circuit. This panel helps ensure that Georgia meets the charges of providing constitutionally required legal defense and also to maintain efficient and effective public defender offices.

During his many years working for an Anheuser-Busch subsidiary, Oden learned the value of putting people first. His work experience included sales, customer service and senior management. As a team builder, he rose through the ranks and was recognized as one of the top executives in his division. Oden then went on to become the CEO and founder of Alexander At’Ta Associates. As a consultant, Oden was sought after by large and medium sized companies for his expertise in improving corporate processes, increasing productivity, and analyzing financial data.

With a heart that is never far from community service, Oden started The Alexander At’Ta Fund. The non-profit organization’s goal is to encourage young people to get involved in community and entrepreneurship. In 2007, Oden effectively combined his business skills and commitment to youths as Executive Director of the Rockdale County Juvenile Court, Evening Reporting Center. He also founded the United Rockdale Summit, an interfaith network of community leaders, which developed a mentorship program for the Rockdale County School System.

A graduate of Kent State University in Ohio, Oden earned Bachelor of Science in Industrial Relations. He credits much of his success to Josett, his wife of 27 years, and their five children.