By Ray Scippa

For the Asian subcontinent, monsoon rains are a summer fact of life. The rains reached unprecedented levels in 2022, flooding vast areas of Pakistan and triggering a massive humanitarian crisis.

Born in the city of Lahore, Punjab province, Low Carbon Technologies Planning Coordinator Tuba Khawaja was determined to help.

“As news and images of what was happening emerged – people losing their homes, schools shut down – it was heartbreaking.”

Tuba had seen how ConocoPhillips supported charitable campaigns. “I know my coworkers care about humanitarian issues, so I thought why not, let’s just do something.”

She reached out to the company’s Community Relations organization and received an immediate response. ConocoPhillips would double match all employee contributions through the company’s Matching Gift Program.

A family dedicated to helping others and a career with purpose

Tuba’s grandfather instilled a passion for education among his eight daughters. Tuba’s mother was a physics professor for many years and her aunts, now living in the U.S., have all pursued careers that enabled them to give back to their communities.

In Pakistan, the family runs a charitable foundation dedicated to educating underprivileged children.

Tuba attained a bachelor's degree in economics in Pakistan. After moving to the U.S. in 2000, she completed her master’s in finance at the University of Houston, then started working in oil and gas. She has worked at many E&P companies including Shell and Hess prior to joining ConocoPhillips.

Since joining ConocoPhillips in 2019, Tuba has held two positions on the cutting edge of technological innovation. She began in Finance as a technology lead in the prestigious Emerging Technology for Finance (ET4F) program aimed to enable and optimize digitalization in Finance. Her focus was on Robotic Process Automation among other emerging technologies. RPA software automates transaction processing allowing robots (attended and unattended) to perform repetitive tasks that involve little judgment or complex analysis. In her two years in ET4F, she successfully automated hundreds of processes and delivered cost and time savings back to the function. She also led numerous technology pilots that resulted in increasing democratizing access to digital technologies and their use in Finance.

“I have always been passionate about the use of digital technologies and how they can be used to transform oil and gas. I quickly realized that with my with skills and background in Finance I could play a role in this energy transition space."

In early 2022, she transitioned to the Low Carbon Technologies team as its financial planning coordinator.

“This is a very exciting, dynamic space. I found something that gives me a purpose. This year, in collaboration with the business units, we compiled the inaugural corporate Net Zero Roadmap, a strategic priority for the organization. Not only are we meeting our short-term targets, but we’re planning to reach that longer-term target of being net-zero by 2050. It's been an incredible learning opportunity to be part of a team that is focused on operationalizing our net-zero ambition.”

Pakistan campaign nets impressive results

Three weeks after the announcement of the company’s Matching Gift offer, more than $40,000 was raised for Pakistan flood relief.

The results exceeded Tuba’s expectations. “Honestly, the day I found out I didn’t have words; I was crying. I am incredibly touched and so grateful to be working alongside such a great group of people.”

Tuba acknowledged that the outside world may not recognize this aspect of people in the oil and gas industry.

“There is a different narrative out there, but I think if you're a part of the community, you see that organizations care. We want to be good citizens and do what’s right.”

A model for diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging

Tuba met her husband Jamal when he visited Lahore in 2000. They were married in 2004 and have two teenage children — 16-year-old Aymon and 18-year-old A’liya.

In addition to her daily work, Tuba spends time promoting diversity, equity and inclusion , and she applauds the company’s efforts to create systems and processes that allow women of color to have a voice in how the future of work is shaped at ConocoPhillips. To her, belonging is key to DEI efforts. Tuba feels like she has found a home away from home.

“You can see me thriving, and that will provide a role model for so many others that are underrepresented or underestimated. I'm a good example that illustrates ConocoPhillips' commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive workforce with access to great opportunities to excel.”