We’re continuing our month-long celebration of International Women’s Day by giving some of our female colleagues a platform to share their stories and inspire change. Franciska Tigchelaar is our Commercial Operations Manager. Starting as as an administrator with ITT Barton Instruments, she has been part of the Sensia journey for more than 30 years. Franciska struggled with career progression in the beginning, finding training and career paths for non-technical roles were not always in place. To overcome this, Franciska attended business night classes and as many product training sessions as she could, resulting in her being selected to be on our first ERP implementation team in 1996. While we’ve come a long way in the last few years, it’s no secret that the oil and gas industry is still very male dominated. Something Franciska Tigchelaar, has experienced first-hand. At Sensia, we’re proud to be an equal opportunities employer. Franciska is in a management role where she has a direct impact on the development and career progress of more than 40 people. “I’ve had the opportunity to build a career that enriched and challenged me year over year. Improving processes, building new teams, implementing many changes, and working with the best. Being trusted with increasing responsibilities, makes me feel like my contributions are valued.” By sharing stories like Franciska’s, we’re hoping to challenge preconceptions at an industry-level. Together, we can give our female colleagues the recognition, respect, and opportunities they deserve. And, in Franciska’s own words, “Do not be afraid to try new things. Sometimes you find your true calling only by doing something outside of your comfort zone”.
