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Suzan de Haan
Vice President HSE Advisory & Support, Wintershall Dea
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You bring in a unique and much needed point of view.
WHAT DO YOU DO?
In my job I combine my operational experience from working on an offshore platform, my knowledge about engineering, project management and health, safety & environment (HSE) with inspirational leadership to motivate our people to create a safe working environment and develop sustainable solutions.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS FIELD?
Being passionate about traveling and curious about other cultures I really wanted to work in a global industry, and chose my study of petroleum engineering, because I liked the combination of technical subjects with ‘soft’ subjects like geology and it offered a lot of opportunities to work abroad. Despite not having a role model to guide me, I was convinced once I visited the university, met other students and heard all the international stories of professors and students. Studying technology has been something I never regretted. It teaches you to think systematically and make decisions based on logic. This is a skill that is useful in many areas!
WHAT DO YOU LOOK AT & THINK, "I WISH YOUNGER ME WOULD HAVE KNOWN THIS WAS POSSIBLE?"
I have been offshore installation manager on a gas production platform on the North Sea for a couple of years. Being responsible for everyone’s safety, for meeting daily production targets and maintaining the overall budget is something I never thought would be possible when I was younger.
WHY DO YOU LOVE WORKING IN STEM?
Engineering is exciting. It’s about creating things together. Teamwork. It’s creative, logical and I work with all sorts of people. To develop a new solution you need different perspectives. And no day is the same.
BEST ADVICE FOR NEXT GENERATION?
You bring in a unique and much needed female point of view. To design things for women, we need women to be part of the design team.
INSPO / FUN FACT
“The sky is the limit!”