Ladies
LEADING by Haley Ragsdale
in the Oil and Gas Business You may need to alter the image of the classic Stetson wearing oil man in your mind, and add a pair of high heels.
In 2001, with two children in tow, she and her husband moved to Midland for her husband’s career. She made the switch, to stay home with her two children, Chloe and Zack. She wanted to be able to attend all of their activities in middle and high school. Despite not working, she did anything but stay at home as she kept busy volunteering extensively and made many connections in the community which ultimately led her to Veritas in 2008.
The oil and gas industry may be notoriously a man’s world, but more and more women are making their mark in the boys club. Candyce Ferreri Roybal is one of them. She is a partner and in house counsel at Veritas 321 Energy Partners, LP. “It is nice to know that now you are not at a disadvantage if you are a female in the oil and gas industry. There is lots of room for female landmen.” Born and raised in New Mexico, Ferreri Roybal has practiced law for twenty years. Before making the move to Midland in 2001 she was a partner in a law firm in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Dubois, Cooksey, Bischoff and Ferreri specialized in business and corporate transactions, commercial litigation, family law, probate and taxation. “I was working fifty to sixty hour weeks and I was burned out.” She said. 14
Ferreri Roybal is one of four partners at Veritas and the only woman. With her legal expertise and background in contract and property law, joining the land business was a perfect fit according to Ferreri Roybal. “I feel blessed to be a partner and manage and train a lot of people. It is about quality control. I want to make sure if it has the Veritas name on it, it is perfect, or as close to perfect as possible,” She said. Veritas 321 Energy Partners, LP is one of the largest land companies in the area and employs over sixty people. Of those employees, eleven are female landmen including a new female law school graduate. She said that Veritas hires three to five interns every summer and always tries to hire women. “There are a lot of savvy women that are now landmen. Women are more detail oriented, efficient with their time and tend to be more personal in their interactions with others. Due to the flexibility, it can be the perfect career path for women,” she said.
PERMIAN BASIN ENERGY MAGAZINE | www.PBEMag.com | OCTOBER 2013