International Women’s Day is a global celebration of women’s achievements, which is part of a larger mission to forge a gender equal world. As part of this, Debbie McMurray – newly appointed Engineering Manager at ENGTEQ, CAN Group’s Engineering Business Stream – reflects on her journey to date as a woman working within the oil and gas industry and shares why it’s important to embrace equity to ensure equality for all.
“Considering I grew up in Aberdeenshire, I didn’t know much about the oil and gas industry on my doorstep. At school I was good at chemistry and maths but the jobs associated with those subjects at the time were typically a doctor or teacher, so engineering wasn’t on my radar. After school I moved to London for University to study Law and Criminology and lived there for four years before returning to the North East where my career in the oil and gas industry began. What was initially a temping role at CAN in 2006, progressed into a permanent position as a Technical Assistant where I got the opportunity to work alongside a team of inspection and corrosion engineers. Looking back, this was a great introduction to the industry which led me to choosing a career within Corrosion Engineering; I loved the fast-paced and challenging nature of the role and working alongside a variety of different people.
CAN were very encouraging and supported me through the majority of my vocational training. After expressing my interest in developing into an Assistant Corrosion Engineer role, the Project Manager I reported to encouraged me to complete a NACE ‘Introduction to Corrosion’ course online before going on to achieve my HNC in Mechanical Engineering, and laterally the MSc in Corrosion Control Engineering. This development led to different opportunities working for two oil & gas operators, across 7 years, in Integrity & Corrosion Roles. Returning to ENGTEQ in 2019, initially in a Senior Corrosion Engineer position, I have been able to interact with many aspects of the business and move towards my current role as Engineering Manager.
One of the aspects I enjoy most about my role is the diverse problem solving, and whilst there are some fixed weekly meetings in place, every day as an Engineering Manager is different. For example, if there is an upcoming monthly contract performance review, I will be focused on collating KPI information or if there is a major audit or a tender process underway, I will likely be contributing information or time to support those activities. My role also involves managing a number of personnel, undertaking interviews and annual appraisals, supporting new recruits and discussing training and development opportunities – with the variety in my role I find that keeping a to-do list definitely helps me manage my time and ensure I stay on track.
Working within a male-dominated industry, my experience as a woman has been generally positive, however, I do recognise that, historically, for many this hasn’t been the case. Women have, and continue to be, overlooked for promotions due to personal circumstances. Whilst I’m lucky to have been provided with fair opportunities at large, there are still some little nuances for females in the industry for example, women are still restricted from visiting some offshore assets due to bedding restraints or lack of facilities, and childcare can be challenging for parents across all industries!
As a woman in a management position raising three young boys, life can be hectic to say the least! After having children, I worked part-time for 6-years which gave me a really good balance of working whilst also having a little extra time with my boys at the weekend. Thankfully CAN have been very supportive of the fact that I do need a degree of flexibility, such as working from home during school holidays or when my children are unwell. Whilst it can be tiring juggling both, my career has been a big part of who I am for the last 17 years and it was always my desire to return to work. So being given the opportunities to progress, while also having that flexibility, has been very rewarding for me. I really want to set an example to my sons that women can do the same jobs that men can, and raise them to be respectful of that.
Diversity is so important; everyone brings something different to the table and having a workforce that is diverse means that you’re going to benefit from a broad range of strengths and skill sets. Getting to know people, where their strengths lie and how to get the best out of them is a very rewarding part of a management role.
To other women looking to start a career in engineering, I would encourage you to consider STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) careers and find out what opportunities are available. One piece of advice from experience is to not to be put off being the only female in a class or team, focus on your strengths and build from there. The first vocational engineering course I attended was very daunting as there were no other females, but I ended up doing really well despite my initial ‘reservations’”.
This year’s theme is #EmbraceEquity, which values diversity by promoting inclusion for all. Achieving equity is a long-term solution towards equality; recognising differences and taking into consideration the diverse lived experiences of individuals. Debbie’s story reflects that people start from all different places, so embracing equity and maintaining flexible approaches can help drive success for all.