Want to do something about climate change? Join Shell

The old oil company stereotype is long out of date. We are working for a cleaner energy future. Graduates: don’t miss out

When I was taking part in a discussion at the UN Climate Summit in New York a few weeks ago, someone asked me a great question that I didn’t have the chance to answer: why would a young person consider applying for a job at Shell? Why Shell instead of, for example, a tech company? And especially, why would someone work for an oil and gas company if they are passionate about climate change?

To these questions I say: if they – and if you – are passionate about the climate, absolutely come and work for Shell.

Why? Because the use of energy products causes the majority of greenhouse gas emissions. And it is exactly because of this link that the energy industry’s transformation is so critical to dealing with climate change. What is more, it is the young people coming into the industry that have the opportunity to shape that transformation.

Here’s the issue though. That transformation will not shape itself. People will shape it. That is why companies like Shell need the very best, the most talented and the most passionate people to ensure change happens both inside the company and beyond.

And make no mistake about it, Shell is changing. In fact, achieving our ambitions will mean becoming a radically different company to the one people know today.

The fact we are taking action right now is one reason Shell does not have a problem keeping the talented young people that join the company. They join, some of them perhaps with the intention of staying for just a year or two, and then they see for themselves what we are doing beyond oil and gas – from biofuels to hydrogen, from solar to wind and power. They see and then they understand that we are the ones making change. Recruits like Ryan, Hayley and Abhi. And they discover that we are acting with purpose.

The first half of that purpose is to produce cleaner energy. Cleaner to tackle climate change and cleaner to deal with air pollution.

The second half of that purpose is to provide more energy: to bring the many benefits of having a modern energy supply to those who do not have it today.

The World Bank estimates that around 840 million people live without electricity today and three billion rely on polluting fuels such as wood and dung to cook food and for heating. Shell aims to bring a reliable supply of electricity to 100 million of those people by 2030, using renewable energy sources as far as possible.

I understand that today’s young graduates want jobs that are about much more than money, prestige and travel. The importance of purpose and direction is a lesson I had to learn myself, and I spoke about that journey recently.

Society’s expectations are changing, and Shell is changing too. In fact, somebody made the observation to me recently that a person joining Shell in 10 or 20 years will not really be joining an oil company any longer.

I would say that the people joining right now are already joining much more than an oil company.

They are joining a company that still does oil but that already does more cleaner-burning natural gas. It is a company that is seeking to grow its petrochemicals business faster than oil and gas, producing the base materials used in everything from printer ink to mattresses. And it is a company trying to work out how to be a major global player in the supply of electricity.

The oil company stereotype is already out of date and will only become more so. And any bright young graduates who fall for that stereotype will miss out.

When I joined Shell 36 years ago, some of my friends asked me why I would join a “sunset industry”. As far as they were concerned the world was about to run out of oil and companies like Shell would cease to exist. They thought the future was coal and then nuclear. It didn’t turn out like that. Instead I have been part of some of the most dynamic, exciting years the company (and the whole industry) has had.

I think the coming decades will be yet more dynamic and exciting. Because one thing we can be certain of is this: that energy is a product people need.

A healthy planet is also something people need.

So if you care about the planet and its people, come and join Shell. Come and help make the change the world needs. And bring your passion.