Athena Awards Finalist Natalya Sachivichik: Innovator, Motivator, Mentor
Range Resources Planning Engineering Manager Natalya
Sachivichik
Natalya (seated, second from right) with Range employees & the University of Pittsburgh Society of Women Engineers (2015)
As a young girl growing up in Kazakhstan, Natalya Sachivichik says one of the most important lessons her mother taught her was independence. Her mother, a doctor, fiercely believed that independence, and the ability to stand on one’s own two feet without relying on anybody else – was the key to living a life without fear of financial or personal insecurity. “It was important to her,” says Natalya. “She faced some challenges growing up, and she used what she learned from those challenges to propel her forward in her career.”
It’s a lesson Natalya carries with her to this day, and something she works to impart to her three children as well. And in the early days of her career as an engineer, it gave her the strength and tenacity to push through where others might have opted otherwise.
Today, Natalya is a Planning Engineering Manager with Marcellus Shale drilling company, Range Resources. In May, she was recognized as a 2017 Athena Leadership Award Finalist. Athena Award finalists are women who have achieved the highest levels of professional excellence while contributing time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community. They also have a record of actively assisting others, particularly women, in realizing their own leadership potential.
As more women seek employment in the oil and gas industry, Natalya’s presence is no longer the anomaly it once was. But as a young woman just starting her career, there were very few women doing the same kind of work. And even before that, as she sought an education, opportunities for women seeking to become petroleum engineers were limited. But she persisted, and ultimately obtained her Masters in Geophysical Engineering.
One of her first jobs after college had her working offshore in the North Sea, off the coast of the Netherlands. Challenges arose fairly quickly. There were far more men than women on the job, and Natalya knew her credentials were being questioned. “When I would come aboard on the offshore rig,” Natalya says, “I might be one of four or six women out of 80 people. Of course, you attract a lot of attention and you get a clear sense that the group is wondering if you can handle the work.”
Natalya handled the work, and continued to prove herself in the industry. Subsequent assignments took her to Britain, and after that, to Alaska. In 2014, she began her career with Range Resources in Washington County.
In addition to her work at Range and raising a family, two sons and a daughter with her husband – Natalya has regularly taken the time to mentor students who are interested in careers in science, engineering and math. Over the last few years, she has worked closely with Girls in STEM, the Society of Women Engineers at the University of Pittsburgh, and the Girl Scouts of America.
As she looks back on an engineering career that now spans two decades, she has this advice for women who may be following in her footsteps: “Stick with it! It will get better! There will be moments in any young professional woman’s life where she may feel excluded, lonely or uncomfortable. But the secret to a successful career is to stick with it, not give up, and more importantly learn from these valuable experiences. It makes you stronger in the end.”
Range Resources congratulates Natalya and all of the other 2017 Athena Awards finalists, including winner Dr. Sally Mounts from the City Mission.
This article is written and sponsored by Range Resources.