A Celebration of Battelle’s Women in Carbon Capture and Storage

In the world today, the energy industry is heavily male dominated. Despite making up 39 percent of the global labor force, women account for only 22 percent of the energy sector, and for management positions, that number is even lower. In relative terms, this gap is more than double the numbers seen within other industries.

At Battelle, however, we’ve dedicated ourselves to changing this narrative. Battelle’s Carbon Services division is made up of 39 percent women overall and even more at the management level with 43 percent. This is a direct result of our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) as we strive to ensure our organization is representative of the communities where we live and work.

The Celebration

To celebrate this fact, earlier this year the incredible women of Battelle’s Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) team were welcomed to a day-long summit. Team members are located across the country, so the goal was to bring them together to recognize their achievements and show appreciation for the work they provide. The sixteen invitees were given the opportunity to connect with each other and members of the Senior Leadership team, discuss the importance of DE&I for CCS and Battelle as a whole, participate in a talent strategy and career enablement workshop, and gain insight on how to navigate and grow their careers at Battelle.

Comments from Lou Von Thaer and Matt Vaughan

Battelle’s CEO, Lou Von Thaer, and President of Applied Science and Technology, Matt Vaughan, opened the day with welcoming statements and Q&A. “We want to know what you feel, what your journey is, what your experiences are, and what we can do better to help you do what you do better,” said Matt Vaughan. “We want you all to bring your whole self and feel comfortable that this is a place where you can do that. The freer you feel, the happier you are, and the happier you are, the better you do in life and in work. Happy people who feel free and comfortable with who they are and where they are collaborate more for innovation, and innovation is what we do.”

Matt’s message wasn’t just for show, but it is a true testament to what we stand for at Battelle. Heather Qualman, Principal CCS Advisor, said in response, “One of the things we do here is hire selectively. The way our personalities mesh and we all complement each other makes us more productive, which is something we all feel and appreciate.”

Storm Woods on DE&I and CCS

Storm Woods, Battelle’s Vice President of DE&I, also gave a presentation on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility at Battelle that included team collaboration and engaged discussion. Our focus for DE&I is to establish Battelle as an employer of choice and the best place to work for diverse talent; with equal access to opportunity and a reputation for driving innovation through inclusion. “When we’re talking about diversity, we’re talking about the range of difference that exists in any group, and the reason that is important is because by having people with different life experiences on a team, we gain access to the knowledge that those people are bringing to the table,” said Storm. It’s these unique experiences, backgrounds, education, and perspectives that each of these talented women bring to Battelle’s CCS team are key to ensuring we’re delivering on our client expectations.

This talented group of women have played a key role in making Battelle one of the most established and trusted names in CCS. Their hard work and dedication have led to the completion of over 75 projects worldwide over the last 25+ years. This day was put together to honor each one of their accomplishments and celebrate Battelle’s commitment to DE&I in contrast to the industry standard. The energy, commitment to success, and sharing of ideas was simply incredible.