The Women in New Energy (WINE) event recently served as an important platform for industry leaders to discuss the advancements and the ongoing challenges females experience across the energy sector. Representing Elementz, Sue Stevens, Head of Commercial, and Jason Brown, CEO, contributed their expertise in subsea asset integrity management and shared their commitment to digital innovation and diversity in the subsea industry. Their insights demonstrated how Integrity Elementz is helping reshape the future of subsea operations.
Key Insights on Leadership
The event began with a fireside chat with Doris Reiter, Senior Vice President of BP North Sea – the first woman to lead BP’s North Sea business in its 60-year history. Doris shared her journey, reflecting on how far the industry has come for women – from workplace attire norms, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion being driven by policy, to the growing need for a larger female locker room on offshore platforms, small yet significant changes all going in the right direction.
Doris also emphasised the importance of mentorship, reflecting on the power of diversity and the broad range of opportunities available to women entering the energy sector today. However, she also acknowledged that much work remains to be done in closing gender gaps.
Women Bringing Depth and Perspective to Energy
Following the Fireside Chat, Sue and Jason participated in 45-minute roundtable discussions with industry experts, where they addressed key challenges and opportunities for women in energy, sharing their insights on the digital transformation of subsea operations.
During this session, Sue highlighted how digital innovations are revolutionising the subsea industry, improving both efficiency and safety. She also reflected on the unique perspectives that women bring to the energy sector. Having often faced greater challenges for visibility and success, women in energy have developed a depth of experience that enriches decision-making and problem-solving – skills that are especially valuable in rapidly evolving fields like technology.
By emphasising the importance of creating environments where women’s voices are heard, their ideas are valued, and diverse perspectives are embraced, Sue noted that while progress has been made, more legislative and societal changes are needed to fully support women.
Roundtable and Panel Discussion Highlights
The event concluded with a series of panel discussions, where key industry themes were explored.
- Attracting and retaining talent: There is a pressing need to attract younger generations into greener jobs to address the diversity gap and combat negative perceptions of the energy sector.
- Mental health and boundaries: Women often juggle personal responsibilities, making it essential to set boundaries and cultivate supportive workplace cultures.
- Male allies: Male colleagues play a crucial role in breaking down gender biases and creating gender-neutral environments within the workplace.
- Visibility of women: Companies have a responsibility to promote inclusivity and increase the visibility of women in leadership and technical roles.
- Neurodiversity: Attracting neurodiverse talent is vital for fostering innovation and creative problem-solving in the evolving energy sector.
- Gender equality programs: Barriers still exist for women in accessing leadership positions due to biases, highlighting the need for more visible female role models.
- Talent pipeline: Educating future talent about diverse career paths beyond STEM can help counter the narrative surrounding the energy sector.
- Freedom of Voice: Creating psychological safety within organisations is essential for enabling diverse voices to be heard and valued.
- Geothermal energy: The geothermal sector presents significant growth potential and should prioritise creating empowering and inclusive environments.
- Driving innovation: Confidence is key for women to assert their ideas and skills, driving innovation in the energy industry.
- Women in engineering: The low representation of women in engineering, especially in Aberdeen, requires the creation of supportive networks to attract and retain female talent.
- Offshore wind: Education in schools is crucial for attracting women to offshore wind, while also recognising the potential of experienced women transitioning into this sector.
- Mindset and cultural transition: Transitioning to renewable energy requires new thinking and a shift in cultural mindsets to avoid inherited biases.
- Career Flexibility: The dynamic nature of career paths today calls for companies to encourage broader experiences across the whole energy sector not just in their field.
Supporting Innovation Through Diversity
Sue and Jason emphasised the importance of diversity in driving innovation, a core value reflected in our company culture. By ensuring that all voices and perspectives are part of the conversation, Elementz is helping shape a future energy industry that is more inclusive, innovative, and responsive to changes and challenges.
The importance of empowering women in our traditionally male-dominated field became very clear.
The WINE event offered us the opportunity to engage with industry peers and showcase the importance of subsea asset integrity in the broader energy transition. As we continue to develop and refine our software, we are excited to play a leading role in making subsea operations safer, more efficient, and more diverse.
