Kim Williams
Vice President, EH&S, Regulatory and Security
Ovintiv Services Inc.
I’m proud to work in an industry that manufactures energy, brings together the brightest minds, the best technologies and nurturing continuous innovation. Reliable and affordable access to energy improves opportunities for education, healthcare and equality – it makes modern life possible for all.
Kim joined Ovintiv (formerly Encana Corporation) as a 19-year-old Chemical Engineering student and spent her early career learning the business from the ground up in a variety of engineering roles including Production, Reservoir, Development, Facilities and Strategic Planning. In 2010, she took on her first formal leadership role and was promoted again only two years later. As a newly minted senior manager, Kim helped her teams navigate some of the Canadian oil and gas industry’s darkest days. She led the Canadian Operations portion of Ovintiv’s portfolio transformation, accomplishing over $5B in property divestitures. In the next few years, she further proved her combined talents for building teams and achieving results, and in 2019 she was named Encana’s first-ever female vice president of environmental health & safety, regulatory affairs and security.
Kim makes it a point to regularly schedule time with young engineers, geologists, and geophysicists. Her ability to help them separate bias from fact, as well as her quick sense of humor have made her a highly sought-after mentor. Kim specifically encourages young females not to wait to be asked to demonstrate their abilities. Her advice to them is to take the initiative, learn the business from the ground-up and demonstrate leadership from any chair in the organization – and to everyone starting out, male and female, she recommends buying an instant pot.
Kim is known for giving back in the areas she serves. In the past two years she has hosted many “Volunteer with Kim,” events throughout Canada and the U.S. The events have drawn volunteers from across Ovintiv in efforts that have included revitalizing historic buildings, renovating an art studio and performing maintenance and repairs at a ranch. Kim also believes strongly in the power of music. She serves as principal oboist in two Calgary bands, both of which perform concerts in the community throughout the year.