Employee Profiles

"Since I've been working for Shell, I have never felt disadvantaged just because I'm a woman. I think that in recent years we've been seeing more women in roles of high responsibility and this is a good sign that things are changing."

Finance Controller

Location: Spain
Joined Shell: 1999

I started working for the Shell Group in 1999 in Tasco Europe. I had previously worked as a Finance Auditor in Ernst & Young for six years.

Initially, I worked under a secondment contract between Ernst & Young and Tasco Europe. I decided to move due to the good experience I was having working with Shell, the support I was receiving from my team leader and the prospect of learning more and moving on to other roles.

I joined as the Record-to-Report Team Leader of the Portuguese Team in Tasco Europe. Since then I've had a number of roles before being appointed as the Downstream Controller/FinOps Manager in November 2005.

The time I worked in Tasco was key to my professional and personal development - it enabled me to develop leadership, motivational and coaching abilities. The focus was very much on team work, training and allowing people to develop. There was always reward and recognition for the extra effort you would make.

As a woman in a career, you often have priorities that are not easily compatible with your personal life and then you have to make choices. I believe that the biggest barrier to women is the lack of time to dedicate to the family. I believe that the fact that Shell is giving priority to areas such as diversity and inclusiveness is a very important step forward.