Alberta's Top Employers (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 60
60
ALBERTA’S TOP EMPLOYERS
Shell Canada focuses on employee growth and learning
P
riya Sreekumar didn’t
have a lot of hope when
she walked into her
manager’s office at Shell
Canada Limited looking
for support in her pursuit of an
MBA. After all, it was March 2020,
oil prices were tumbling, and the
world was shutting down under
pandemic-induced uncertainty.
“It was a bad time to be asking,”
she says. “I thought for sure the
answer was going to be ‘No way.
We’re in the middle of a global
pandemic.’” Instead, she received
the opposite answer — an enthusiastic “yes.”
“That really showed to me
that if you take the initiative for
your own personal growth, Shell
Canada will get behind you,” says
Sreekumar.
People are at the heart
of everything that we do.
Shell’s culture shows up
in how we listen, how we
lead and how we support
one another.
— Stastia West
President and Country Chair
In hindsight, she admits her
supervisor’s response shouldn’t
really have come as a surprise.
“That emphasis on learning and
development is what truly sets
Shell apart and makes it a special
place to work,” she says. “The
company really helps you grow.”
Sreekumar has been with Shell
Canada since she graduated from
the University of Alberta with
a chemical engineering degree
An employee at Shell Canada works from one of the organization’s industrial sites.
18 years ago. Today, she is the
company’s global sustainability
advisor. She started her career
with Shell in Edmonton, worked
for a period as an economist in
Denmark, then moved to the
company office in Qatar before
returning to Calgary where she’s
currently based.
“Even though it’s been just 18
years, it’s been a multitude of
experiences, not just in terms
of disciplines but in technical,
commercial and different lines of
business,” she says. “Working from
downstream, upstream, integrated
gas, different continents. It’s been
very holistic and it’s really helped
me grow as a professional.”
Stastia West is Shell Canada’s
president and country chair.
Like Sreekumar, she joined the
company right after graduating
from university 31 years ago. She
says the wealth of opportunities
offered by the global company
was what originally attracted her;
Shell Canada’s values and culture
made her stay.
“So long as you are craving
opportunity and you can deliver
on the things you say you are
going to deliver on, there is a lot
of opportunity for growth and
development here. And some
of that opportunity may come
working outside of the country in
exotic places.”
West says helping employees
develop and grow has always
been one of Shell’s top priorities.
“People are at the heart of
everything that we do,” she says.
“Shell’s culture shows up in how
we listen, how we lead and how
we support one another.”
The listening process includes
an annual employee survey that
engages opinions on a range of
subjects. “It’s important for us to
understand how our employees
