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Jeanette Ourada considers ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ State University’s College of Engineering to be the foundation of a career that integrated multiple aspects of complex problem solving. She notes that, as a female in a male-dominated profession, professors helped build her confidence to compete in any discipline. The varied and flexible program allowed her to explore different classes and focus her area of interest on solving business problems through computer science. After graduating from ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ State, Jeanette worked for Weyerhaeuser, writing code and installing computer systems for payroll, incentive compensation, and inventory control for the company’s diaper plants. She went on to complete her MBA in Finance from the Wharton School of Business to expand her problem-solving capabilities. Her first job after business school was in the oil and gas industry where she was attracted to making disciplined capital investment decisions for energy projects that spanned the globe. These projects had complicated local legal and regulatory requirements that kept Jeanette traveling to over 70 countries while working for Atlantic Richfield, Unocal, and Chevron. During this time, she also lived and worked abroad in Thailand with responsibility for Chevron’s China and Southeast Asia financial organizations. Ourada held two key roles with Chevron that benefited from her mix of technical, commercial, and financial skills. The first was to lead Investor Relations and explain Chevron’s business proposition during a heavy capital investment cycle which included deep water platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, crude processing in Kazakhstan, and LNG plants in Australia. The second was moving into the role of Vice President and Corporate Controller during a period of volatile commodity prices. She provided reliable external financial reports and implemented sophisticated analytical and forecasting processes to give management enhanced insights into key business drivers. Jeanette is proud of her time at Chevron, especially when she helped build the financial fluency of the company’s worldwide workforce. Jeanette was also inspired by teachers and professors throughout her education and is now a strong advocate for girls and women in STEM.