It is generally accepted that there is no place for women in the oil and gas industry, but not only men can build a successful career in this field. Let’s tell the inspiring story of Anna Karpova, a petroleum engineer. Anna went from a geophysicist on oil platforms to a manager in an oil and gas company. She also develops her own clothing brand and conducts coaching sessions, and even participated in a TV show on the Friday channel. In this article we will tell you how she manages to combine all this.
Women on shift: is it difficult to work in oil fields?
It’s rare that a job in the oil and gas industry involves a cozy office in the city center. Most often you have to work in shifts (Editor’s note: shift work is periodic or seasonal work outside the workers’ permanent place of residence, when they cannot return home every day). Most professions have shift work conditions.
How did you get into the oil and gas industry?
I have no relatives in the oil and gas industry. Therefore, the choice of profession was made, like most applicants, at a family council. I told my parents that I love chemistry, fashion, and I also like to dance (smiles). In response I heard something like this: “You will always have time to dance, but for now you need to get a serious education.”
I went to the oil industry because I HAD TO, but I stayed there out of love.
As a result, I have been working in this field for more than 10 years. During this time, she managed to build a career from a petroleum engineer to a manager and teacher. Even though oil and gas is a rather male-dominated field, I found enormous opportunities for development in it.
What do geophysicists do at an oil well?
When I first entered the oil and gas industry, I was an ordinary trainee engineer. There was a lot of work, mostly related to manual labor: dealing with geophysical equipment and assembling a layout of instruments. The length of such chains reached 50 meters, and each weighed several tons.
At the same time, each device had to be calibrated, keyed, and the necessary sensors installed. Next, we take our assembly to the drilled well and lower it inside.
The average depth of oil wells is from 3 to 4.5 km. At the same time, there is colossal pressure and very high temperatures inside. And our devices must withstand all this.
What happens next? The instruments record curves of geophysical parameters, such as porosity or permeability of rocks. This data is transmitted to an engineer, who is located right there in the field in a special trailer and records everything.
Our goal is to see at what depth there is oil or gas and in what quantities. This will allow us to subsequently calculate the profit for the client from the development of this deposit.
How else do geophysicists work?” Learn more about the life and work of field geophysicists by reading this article: How field geophysicists live and work in Canada: one day on the other side of the Arctic
Is working shifts difficult?
Geophysicists are like nomads. It happened that in a week I could find myself at five different fields. Today I’m going to work in the Arctic, tomorrow I’m going to Siberia, and then I find myself on the Caspian Sea.
Of course, this type of work is not suitable for everyone. And the main difficulty is not even that you are rarely at home. Often the road itself becomes a test. Geophysicists work in remote corners of the planet. Therefore, to get to the desired point, you have to make your way on swamp vehicles, Kamaz trucks or helicopters. I’ve arrived – I’m already a hero! And then you find yourself in almost wild conditions for weeks and months. And if you don’t encounter a bear, consider yourself lucky.
If I didn’t know the inside and didn’t have time to work in the fields, I wouldn’t be able to take the next step in my career. Field work experience helped me become a manager and teacher in a large oil and gas company.
And about how to build a career in oil and gas even without a specialized education, read our article.
Why is it important for a petroleum engineer to gain foreign experience?
How does foreign experience affect your career and what are the differences between working in Russia and abroad. Let’s try to figure out how colleagues from other countries treat our specialists.
Are abroad new opportunities?
Just 5 years ago, our specialists could go abroad and study how internal processes work in large oil and gas companies. I myself gained this experience: I worked in 8 countries, in more than 100 fields.
Now this is much more difficult. However, for a successful career, not only your experience in the industry and location, but also your offshore experience are still important. For example, specialists who worked on foreign offshore platforms are highly valued.
Abroad is a completely different way of thinking. Therefore, when our guys return to their homeland, they can change and revise already established processes or introduce something new with great success.
I myself worked as an engineer in Russia for 4 years, gradually built a career and grew upward. After defending my educational project, I was sent to the Netherlands. There I managed the base for the preparation of geophysical equipment and was responsible for Western Europe.
Such powerful career growth, of course, was accompanied by enormous responsibility. In a new team, you must again prove from scratch that you are a great specialist. I learned to lead a team of 8 men. Moreover, each of them had 20 or more years of experience in the industry. Yes, it’s quite difficult, but in a year I managed to build all internal processes practically from scratch.
Are our specialists different from foreigners?
Workers from Russia are highly valued abroad. The main difference is that we are willing to dive much deeper into each issue. We know the theory well and get to the bottom of it.
Where foreign colleagues act strictly according to instructions and observe subordination, our guys are ready to offer options and solve the problem much faster.
For example, Canadians will never make a decision that is not spelled out in the instructions. They will wait, call the manager and pretend that everything is going according to plan. We will take the initiative into our own hands and try to fix the problem on the spot or find workarounds. Yes, this approach is associated with certain risks, but more often it leads to great results.
And to work abroad, it is important to be fluent in foreign languages. Read more about this in our article “How not to give up learning English”.
Is gender balance in a company important?
The coolest team is the one where there are representatives of both sexes. This is due to the fact that men and women have different mindsets. When they work together on one project, they solve the assigned tasks more successfully and quickly.
According to research Massachusetts Institute of Technology, teams with members of both genders are more effective.
For example, our company had specific planning figures, the percentage of women in the industry:
- by 2025 25%;
- by 2030 30%.
At the same time, there is sexism in the oil and gas industry, when you are treated first of all as a woman, and only then as a specialist.
At the university, I often heard from teachers: “Why did you enroll in this specialty? Do you want to find a husband? And this happened during work too. We were on shifts for a long time, and colleagues often asked: “Are you married? How did your husband let you go?” I had to explain that I was not ready to sacrifice my career because I love my job. I believed that a woman was quite capable of being successful and taking care of her personal life at the same time.
How difficult is it for a woman to find a balance between career and personal?
I was on shifts for weeks and months. At this time, my boyfriend was at home and waiting. Because of work, we saw each other quite rarely, we constantly corresponded in messengers and called each other.
I admit, this is not an easy experience. But we lasted in this mode for more than 10 years. And when we finally started living together, we realized: we are very different. From a distance it was not noticeable.
When our relationship ended, I began to analyze: what kind of person do I need to make me feel comfortable? Coaching helped me a lot, it highlighted all the difficult moments and gave me direction on where to move next. In the end, I found the person who turned out to be close to me in spirit.
Our meetings were colorful: we flew on an airplane, rode a way-surf, and flew in a wind tunnel. Even now, 3 years later, we are constantly trying new things. It fuels our relationship.
What else can a petroleum engineer do?
Some people manage to make their life varied and develop many interesting projects. Others are completely immersed in their professional activities and are afraid to try new things. Is it possible to do something else at the same time as work?
If you want to build a career in the oil and gas industry, then read our article “How to build a career in oil and gas, even if you do not have a specialized education”.
Designers from engineers – is this even possible?
3 years ago I created my own clothing brand Combez.lab. It all started with several models of work overalls. I adapted them for everyday life, drew sketches and thought through the design myself. My brand is about courage and the desire to go beyond: “Don’t be afraid. Go for your dream. Expand your boundaries.” When you put on such a jumpsuit, you feel how achievementist notes appear in you.
Now, together with the designer, we are developing new models and expanding the range. In addition to overalls, we already have more familiar T-shirts, sweatshirts, tracksuits, as well as business models that can be combined with classic shoes.
How did you get on TV?
I have always believed that any reality is a production, and artists participate in them. But when I was invited to take part in “Hard Workers” on the Friday TV channel, I considered it an interesting experience. The participants were people of ordinary professions, and we competed for a prize of 10 million.
At that time I had already been running my business for 5 years channel on YouTube, in which she talked about people in working professions. This show became a kind of challenge, and I agreed. The program was filmed in Moscow and the Moscow region. The participants and I lived in a hotel. And from here we were taken to various locations.
The most unusual location for filming was an abandoned shopping center building. An ordinary concrete box with flaming oil barrels, inside which the organizers placed obstacles. Even being in this smoky room was difficult. Some people needed medical help, but my back simply hurt from constant walking. When the competition began, it became clear that there would be no concessions. I tried my best, but I dropped out of the show at the end of the first episode.
My goal initially was to reach the finals. I even freed October from important matters. And I actually planned to celebrate my birthday during filming. But everything didn’t go according to plan: I dropped out of the competition at the very beginning, after the first series. Participating in the show was an invaluable experience. I realized that I felt like a fish in water in the media field. I like it, I enjoy the process.
Why did you decide to get into coaching?
Coaching is the most effective tool for personal development. It allows you to see the best in both people and teams.
I first learned about coaching during a tour to Baikal. At that moment, I was depressed: the main goals in the profession had been achieved, but in my personal life there was a period of uncertainty. I didn’t understand where to move next and what I wanted to achieve.
This was a training for those who are interested in their development and want to reach new heights. We worked with a coach as a team, completed tasks and analyzed our own actions.
During that first session, I formulated a request for an ideal husband, wrote down 10 qualities that he should have, and recorded that I wanted to create my own clothing brand and develop in the field of teaching.
It’s only been a few years, but I’ve already successfully completed these three steps. I continue to work with my own fears and constantly learn and develop.
Moreover, coaching has become the main focus of my activity. I conduct trainings where participants learn to better understand themselves, their goals and build a vector for further development.
Try new things, don’t be afraid!
There are no female and male professions. Nowadays, a woman can work anywhere: as a geophysicist on an oil platform or as an assistant to a driller. In parallel, we can develop our other projects: start a blog, create a new clothing brand, become a coach or launch your own media. Don’t be afraid to dream and imagine your ideal life.
Share your story – what field do you work in, how did you achieve your dream, what stereotypes did you encounter? Your experience can inspire others not to be afraid to change their lives and move towards their goals!
