Spotlight on…

You bring an impressive 25 years of experience in the downstream fuels sector. Tell us what drew you to Phillips 66 Limited and about your new role.

I’ve worked in the industry since 1999. My first role was at (Futura) Harvest Energy, where I spent 17 years, followed by positions at Greenergy and Mabanaft UK Ltd. It was in my last role that the opportunity arose to join Phillips 66, and I didn’t think twice before applying.

I’ve always admired Phillips 66 from the outside. It’s a small industry, so you often bump into people at events. I would never have guessed, on first meeting Geoff Henderson at an industry event years ago, that he would one day be my line manager! Throughout my years of working in the downstream sector, I would often hear positive things about Phillips 66 Limited, giving me an insight into its culture and ways of working. Mostly, I’d hear about how nice everyone was to work with, that it’s very easy to deal with the wholesale team, IT systems are highly effective, and any problems are swiftly sorted.

Tell us more about the marine side of the business and why it interests you.

My background has been anchored in commercial road fuels. Primarily, we’d be working with truckloads of fuel, mostly diesel and gasoline. So, my move into marine sales, working with marine gas oil, has been a big (and exciting) shift! It’s a whole new world that I’m eager to dive into. Where I’d once dealt with trucks transporting fuels on land, I’m now moving parcels on barges and small vessels. It’s given me a new lease of life. Every day, I learn something new, which I relish. I’m very much looking forward to my first trip to visit the Humber refinery to see it in action in a few weeks.

How have you found your first quarter at the company?

The first ten weeks have flown by. I’m loving it! The Customer Conference was in my first few weeks of joining and was a great way to meet the customer base and hit the ground running. I’ve met lots of new people and had many interesting conversations. It feels like a new lease of life.

What are the most valuable lessons that you’ve learned in your career?

Never be complacent and never underestimate. In times of operational difficulty, it’s important to take a step back and look at the situation with a long lens, and that’s not always easy to do. Often, I find breaking things down into smaller steps is the key to tackling a bigger problem. I try to use my strategy of staying calm in a crisis. These moments are difficult but have brought valuable lessons to carry forward in my career.

Networks are crucial to sales. What’s the key to building and fostering good relationships?

My strategy, following years in the industry, is to value and nurture relationships over a long time. And really, that’s about maintaining regular contact, whether it’s good or bad news, in a transparent way. Of course, going to events and networking is vital. While at the Customer Conference recently, I saw it as the perfect forum for exactly that. I was able to meet clients I’d never come across and get to know them and their businesses. It was a great way to get instant exposure to everyone.