A woman's place is in the driver's seat: the resource development industry embraces positive change.

• Author: Gallion, Mari
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: Resource Development

When we think of the women who have made their marks as leaders throughout history, many would call to mind fierce warriors like Boudica, said to be so tough that even the Romans didn't want to mess with her; Joan of Arc, who was 'born to' he martyred; or women like Rosa Parks, whose quiet rebellion in being fed up with an everyday injustice earned a reaction that was anything but quiet.

However, the women leaders of today find their leaderships positions quite naturally and with much less fanfare than did their predecessors, and it is becoming increasingly less unusual to find them not only in the boardroom, but at the head of the table at the biggest resource development companies in the world.

Janet Weiss, president of BP Alaska, is one such leader, and feels excited and ready to lead Alaska's resource development industry through its current transition.

"Being the first woman to serve as regional president for BP here in Alaska is a great opportunity," she says. "It is right up there with being the first longtime Alaskan to become BP's Alaska regional president," which is another feather in her cap, neither accomplishment of which she could have anticipated when she was getting her Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering at Oklahoma State University approximately three decades ago.

"When my husband and I arrived here twenty-eight years ago I never imagined that our path would lead me to such an exciting and challenging role," Weiss says. 'Tin both humbled and inspired by the challenge of ensuring BP does our part to build a strong and sustainable future for Alaska following the Alaska Oil Tax Reform law."

Weiss's rather humble industry beginnings tell a similar story to many industry employees, which lends to her credibility as the leader who joins the troops in the vanguard rather than calling out commands from the tower.

"To help pay for college, I worked in a co-op program where a student alternates semesters going to school and working in industry," she says. "It is like a summer internship on steroids. I spent several semesters with ARCO, a company that was starting up fields on the North Slope of Alaska. I was swept up by the possibility of moving to Alaska."

"I started on the North Slope as a process engineer then moved into reservoir engineering," she continues. "I gravitated to work assignments that were all about enabling new opportunities and clarifying strategic options, then defining direction."

Like many good leaders, Weiss spends less time focusing on herself and her personal story, demonstrating that her presence here is primarily because of her enthusiasm for the industry and the quality of her work.

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