Edna Michelle Bisso Bi Mba, born in 1989 in Libreville, Gabon, is an accomplished petroleum engineer with a robust academic background from the Clausthal University of Technology in Germany and the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Géologie in France. She has navigated a diverse and successful career path, starting as a simulation reservoir engineer and now serving as Head of Reservoir Services at the Technology and Services Center of Harbour Energy. At the beginning of September, Harbour Energy took over Wintershall Dea's operating business. Since then, Edna has been part of Harbour Energy.

Edna is also a passionate advocate for gender equality and, as Co-Chair of former Wintershall Dea Women’s Network, is actively involved in promoting an inclusive working environment. In addition, she is the Chair of the German Section of SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineer), a professional association that contributes to innovative solutions, powered by people, to address the world’s demand for sustainable energy. In 2024, she was selected as the recipient of the prestigious Giovanie Paccaloni Young Professional Service Award of the Society of Petroleum Engineers. This award is not only a statement for Edna’s exceptional leadership, but also a reflection of her passion for the energy industry and for helping others to achieve more.

Career: What inspired you to transition from reservoir engineering to managing lab services, and how has this shift influenced your perspective on the industry?

My transition from technical to management was mainly driven by the need to see the bigger picture, to understand how strategic decisions are made within the company, and to have more interaction with colleagues from different technical backgrounds and locations around the world.

One of my esteemed peers once told me he would not hesitate to join my team and would love to have me as his line manager. This feedback was very powerful for me and inspired me to take this step.

Joining the Technology and Service Center (TSC), our competence center for reservoir and production services was the right step for me. In my position, I work with colleagues from different technical background – geologists, engineers, lab technicians, production chemists – who dedicate their time to providing complex laboratory and tailor-made solutions that support reservoir evaluation and optimise the operations of our business units and our external clients.

In our industry, it is essential to collaborate with different disciplines and involve all parties from the beginning to deliver successful projects. Working at TSC makes me understand the importance of having a solution center as a strong and constant partner. Through our efficient and proactive services, we help reduce the risk and cost of critical projects from exploration to decommissioning.

Facing challenges: Can you share a specific challenge you faced as a woman in the petroleum industry and the strategy you used to overcome it?

One of the biggest challenges I faced as a woman working in a male-dominated industry  was one that I was unaware of for a long time. As we all know, all organisations have tasks that many people don’t want to do, such as planning a team-building event or site visit, onboarding new colleagues or simply helping others with their work. Studies have shown that women are disproportionately asked and expected to do these tasks, so called Non-Promotable Tasks (NPTs). NPTs are typically low visibility, require no special skills or qualifications and have a negligible impact on the organisational strategy.

After reading The No Club: Putting a Stop to Women’s Dead-End Work, I realised that I had too many of these tasks on my to-do list and needed to do something about it. My first step was to raise awareness of the existence of NPTs and discuss it with the management. I made sure that my manager understood the problem and considered it while distributing such tasks in the team. I also have learned and started saying no to requests that took me away from the most important work in my career.

Advice for aspiring women: What key advice would you offer to young women aspiring to build a career in the petroleum engineering field?

My key advice to young women who want to build a career in the petroleum industry would be to first improve their technical expertise by learning every day. I recommend reading technical papers such as SPE papers and strive to become an author. Invest in networking and apply Mike Sansone’ 70-20-10 magic formula. Based on my own experience, I would strongly recommend engaging in a professional society such as SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers), volunteering and looking for opportunities to develop leadership and communication skills. Then it is important to make room for mentoring, to be a mentee and to become a mentor. As young women enter the workforce, they should be aware of NPT – Non Promotable Tasks. To learn more about this topic, I highly recommend the book The No Club: Putting a Stop to Women’s Dead-End Work.

Promoting Inclusivity: What initiatives have you found most effective in fostering gender equality and inclusivity, and what impact have they had?

The Champions for Changes (CfC) programme.
More than 20 leaders, mostly men, (board members, senior vice presidents, team leaders) from all Wintershall Dea locations took part in this allyship programme in which the Women’s Network educates, coaches and supports executives throughout the company. Champions for Change must act as change makers and be visible role models for inclusion throughout the organisation. Specifically, the Women’s Network facilitators provided them with advice and inspiration on how to champion gender equality. External DE&I experts were also invited to give us some guidance on how to practice gender equality in our daily professional lives.

In July 2024, we held our final meeting where we discussed several key issues with our champions, such as the growing importance of prioritising diversity and women’s leadership, the impact of the crisis on women’s careers and opportunities, successful  long-term diversity policies, and the critical role of male leaders in fostering a gender-equal culture.

Embracing innovation: Which emerging technologies do you believe will revolutionise the petroleum industry, and how can professionals prepare for these changes?

I strongly believe that digitalisation and automation will continue to revolutionise the oil and gas industry, enabling proactive maintenance and optimisation of operations. The use of artificial intelligence, data science, real-time monitoring and analysis of production, and the introduction of robotic drilling rigs and drones to inspect onshore and offshore facilities will significantly transform the industry.

In addition, the integration of renewable energy technologies such as solar, wind and geothermal as well as carbon capture and storage or hydrogen production and storage will help reduce the carbon footprint of traditional oil and gas operations. To achieve this and to continue to innovate, petroleum professionals will need to adapt by learning and educating themselves on how their oil and gas skills can be applied to the assessment of clean energy pathways.

Future Vision: What are your top recommendations for the energy industry to create a more diverse and inclusive environment at all levels?

To create a culture of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, CEO and leadership team’s commitment is essential. Companies should advocate and promote employee networks. The networks are safe spaces for people to come together and build a workplace based on shared identities. They help raise awareness and provide a collective voice to help educate the workforce. Last but not least I would recommend to set internal targets and include DEI targets in balanced scorecards and increase employees awareness of unconscious bias through trainings and in everyday life.