O. KABELL, World Oil, Houston, Texas

The Women’s Global Leadership Conference celebrated its 20th year running as it kicked off on Nov. 19-20, once again bringing female leaders and industry experts from around the globe to discuss pressing concerns and shifts in the industry that are unique to the female experience.

While leadership was the overarching focus of the conference, panel and keynote topics ranged from concerns like work-life balance and industry cultural expectations, to practical leadership strategies and the diverse possibilities of career trajectories in the industry.

Making the transition to leadership. In a panel by the same name, panelists discussed the strategies and pitfalls of taking on leadership roles as they offered their experiences with leadership in various areas of the oil and gas and broader energy industry. Pearl Chu, Technical Director of Domains and University Relations for SLB, served as moderator for the panel.

One of the common themes throughout the panel was that leadership, particularly in managerial roles, is about providing the tools and support to help teams succeed. “What does my team need? What do the people next to me need to be successful?” asked Kristen Keyser, North America Director of Operations, Subsea Services, TechnipFMC. Keyser emphasized that performance is critical as a leader, not only as an individual, but in how that leadership reflects on your team. “Your career is in your hands, but your success is in your team,” Lourdes Cozzitorto, VP of Technology Portfolio Management and Services for KBC, A Yokigawa Company agreed in her own take on the subject. Cozzitorto added that “you are a leader if people are able to follow you,” emphasizing the importance of building trust as a team lead and creating space for team members to contribute ideas and promote overall success.

Dawn Constantin, COO of Gas & Power Trading at SLB, expanded the conversation with a practical question: “Do you know what you want to be…[and] do you know the same for your team?” Direction is critical in leadership—not only for individual emerging female leaders, but for the teams and colleagues that they lead. Equally important is “the courage to address what isn’t working, [otherwise] you can get snowballed,” particularly when it comes to leveraging the voices and expertise of team members. Jessica Miller Nock, ESG Engagement Manager for Chevron, also added a key point to leveraging a team’s collective expertise: “you don’t need to know everything, and you shouldn’t need to know everything.” Credit where it’s due, she noted, allows team members to take advantage of varied skill sets while building trust.

Up and coming leaders. The Q&A session that followed the main panel offered some words of wisdom to emerging leaders in the industry, with a warning against the pitfalls that can derail emerging leaders. Arrogance was a common through line in the discussion, with several panelists noting that it could prove a stumbling block particularly for leaders very early in their career.

Cozzitorto joined in, saying, “[it’s important to] show respect for the people who have paid their dues,” thus creating rapport between newer leaders and their older, more experienced counterparts. Preconceptions should also be discarded, Keyser pointed out, in order to adapt a leadership role to individual teams and environments. As a closing thought, Keyser reiterated a central point: becoming a leader is not just telling people what to do—it’s making sure your team has what they need to succeed.