Breaking Boundaries: Recent Episodes
Technip Energies
At Technip Energies, our people are pioneers. They lead the way in world firsts, push the limits on innovation & break boundaries to engineer a sustainable future.Through our “Breaking Boundaries” podcast, we talk to colleagues who follow unconventional paths, stretch their limits and go beyond their comfort zones to achieve their goals. Join our host Talumba Katawala, National Content & Public Affairs Manager at Technip Energies Mozambique, for monthly inspiration from our guests.
In our upcoming 13th episode of the Breaking Boundaries podcast, we have the privilege of hosting Poornima Sharma, the VP of Operations at Technip Energies for Europe and the Americas. With a remarkable career spanning over 35 years in the energy industry, Poornima has risen to the ranks of senior management and stands as a symbol of strength and determination.
Originally from India, her journey has taken her across continents, notabley the USA, where she pursued her engineering career with unwavering dedication. Poornima has a proven track record of successfully managing high-performing engineering projects.
Currently based in California, she leads operations for Europe and the Americas Business Line 2 at Technip Energies. Join us in this episode as Poornima shares her valuable insights, experiences, and leadership strategies in the ever-evolving energy industry. Get ready to be inspired by her incredible journey and expertise.
As we celebrate one year of our Breaking Boundaries podcast, we explore the inspiring journey of Manikandan Narayanan, the Head of Business and Technology for Technip Energies in the Asia Pacific region. Born in the state of Tamil Nadu, the southern part of India, Mani has had a fascinating career in engineering, spanning over 30 years, of which 18 years at Technip Energies.
Mani began his career in the field of aromatics and petrochemical plant operations. With his passion for design engineering, he pivoted his focus toward the design aspect of the industry. Over the years, he has worked in different countries, including India, Malaysia, Europe, and other APAC countries.
In this episode, Mani shares his insights on the concept of purpose in the corporate world. He strongly believes in doing the profession for the sake of the profession, and his experiences reflect that belief. As the Head of Business and Technology, he has played a vital role in driving innovation and growth for Technip Energies in the Asia Pacific region.
Join us in this episode to learn more about Mani's inspiring journey as an engineer, his experiences working in different countries, and his insights on the importance of purpose in the corporate world.
In this episode, Talumba Katawala is joined by Caroline Coton-Tranape, who is the Assistant Research and Development Director at the Technip Energies Boston Operating Center.
Caroline is a chemical engineer who graduated from the National School of Chemical Industries in Nancy, France. She has a deep interest in sustainability and innovation and is particularly enthusiastic about reinventing the industry for a more circular economy.
Caroline and her team have successfully implemented several initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of the industry. She is constantly researching and seeking out new solutions to improve the sustainability of industrial processes.
Her hard work and dedication have been an inspiration to her team and allowed the company to make significant strides in research and development.
Karin was always passionate about math and science—especially molecules!
She is also driven by the question of how to marry theory and practice in science, and so after her Ph.D. in Chemical Reaction Engineering, she moved to a role in the industry.
Today she runs our Frankfurt lab, advancing the field of polymer science, and is also an Innovation Coach, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the world of chemical recycling and sustainability.
In this episode, she discusses her move from academia to industry, the importance of equal opportunities in science, her approach to innovation, and the sustainable solutions of the future.
“It’s not about working harder, it’s about working smarter”: Samantha Jones, Learning and Development Director.
Following a move from Aberdeen to becoming Learning and Development Director for Technip Energies in Paris, in this episode Samantha shares her experience helping people acquire new skills as the energy transition gathers pace.
Stressing the importance of good colleagues and role models as well as the need to develop core skills, resilience and adaptability, Samantha explains how we will all need to adapt our skills in a changing world.
Join Samantha in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in the first episode of Breaking Boundaries of 2023!
Growing up in Colombia, it was through passion and hard work that Alexandra reached a leadership position establishing the Technip Energies UK Operating Centre.
Changing country and language as well as becoming a mother along the way, in this episode Alexandra discusses the challenges and responsibilities she has faced, both in driving the energy transition in the UK market as well as being a female leader at T.EN, always leading by example!
Join Alexandra in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in this last episode of Breaking Boundaries of 2022!
Listen to how Hugues de Prémare plans to fulfill one of his oldest dreams, crossing the Atlantic Ocean!
This 27-year-old ocean enthusiast is committed to competing in 2023’s Mini Transat, the emblematic and iconic sailing competition that connects Europe and Latin America.
Still early in his career as a Naval Architecture Engineer with us, Hugues spends days, sometimes weeks offshore. This episode provides a real immersion, not only in Hugues’s profession but also in his passion for sailing and his fascination with the oceans and their mysteries.
Hugues talks about what it is like to be a naval architecture engineer, how he finds the balance between his job and his passion, the skills needed to work offshore, the lessons learnt from sailing, but also the preparations for September 2023, the year of his departure for the Mini Transat.
Join Hugues in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in this seventh episode of Breaking Boundaries.
With over 20 years of experience in the company, Li Na has worked her way up from chemical engineer to leading T.EN China Operating Center.
In this episode, Li gives us her unique vision of management and how she sees herself as a "service provider," placing trust, responsibility and collaboration at the heart of
her relationship with her team.
Join Li in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in this fourth episode of Breaking Boundaries.
Coming from humble beginnings in a small German village, Harald always wanted to be a cook but started his career at a mechanic shop. He didn’t like coming home with greasy fingers though, so he put himself through evening school for almost a decade to become an engineer! Later, he even went on to start his own business in China. Currently heading site management in Germany, Harald’s story is all about the importance of having goals, working hard, being disciplined and using dissatisfaction as fuel to reach your goals instead of letting it bring you down.
Growing up in South India, Prema was the first woman in her family to become an engineer, leaving her local area of Chennai in the early 1990s and embarking on an extremely successful engineering career, becoming Director of Mumbai Operating Center in 2019. Prema has been constantly adapting to cultural and technological change, balancing career and family life, relishing every opportunity and never giving up!
In this episode, Prema also encourages women to take opportunities that come on their way and not shy away from prioritizing themselves and aspiring to the top. She offers her vision on how the industry can better support women engineers to reach top roles.
Join Prema in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in this fourth episode of Breaking Boundaries.
When he was seven years old, Edgar and his family left Angola during the civil war in the late 1980s and moved to France. From his engineering studies through to travel and work in Australia, China, India and South Korea to leading an operating center of Technip Energies in Mozambique, Edgar’s story is about perseverance, passion and the drive to succeed.
Relating his experiences in managing and leading teams, project engineering, business development and operations, Edgar shows how motivation and self-knowledge is key to success in life and work — because everything is engineered!
Join Edgar in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in this third episode of Breaking Boundaries.
As a young expat from Indonesia, Carolina Nugroho’s career took her places, quite literally. Living in countries around the globe, from England to Nigeria, and USA to France, Carolina, currently Project Manager of Floating Offshore Wind in Paris, had to constantly adapt to new cultures, environments, and ways of life, but that constant change is exactly what attracted her to her job!
With her excitement for new challenges, curiosity, passion for engineering and a refreshing attitude about putting interests and skills ahead of gender, Carolina is all about having the confidence to chase after dreams and embracing change – that new change in your life that you fear might just as well be the start of a beautiful new journey.
Join Carolina in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in this second episode of Breaking Boundaries.
Inspired by her namesake Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, Valentina Gabriel, Head of our Kuala Lumpur Operating Center, was not only the first graduate in her family but was also among the first batch of women engineers to go abroad at Technip Energies.
From always asking for what she wanted all along her 30-year career at Technip Energies and advocating for her team’s work-life balance, to taking risks at work, and becoming a scuba diving instructor, she is a woman with strong opinions, many passions and great advice!
Join Valentina in conversation with our host Talumba Katawala in the first episode of Breaking Boundaries, and learn about her life, her career and how she overcame challenges along the way.