16.12.2025
On December 10, Kyiv hosted the Energy Club forum “THE ENERGY OF WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP” — an event gathering female leaders of the energy industry who, amidst a full-scale war, took on the management of teams, processes, and responsibility for the resilience of critical infrastructure.
The first panel discussion focused on real leadership experience during blackouts, constant stress, and uncertainty. Participants discussed the toughest professional challenges, non-trivial managerial decisions, team motivation, and how the war has changed attitudes toward female executives. One of the panel speakers was Tetiana Shutka, Director of Service and Development at Prykarpatenergotrade LLC.
Tetiana Shutka began her story with a personal anecdote which, she says, illustrates not only her path but also the transformation of society in general. Although she studied at a technical university, she never planned to work in the electric power industry. Her very first job interview ended in rejection, with a phrasing she remembered for a lifetime: “We are rejecting you because your classmate is a guy; girls don’t suit us.”
According to the speaker, holding a managerial position in an energy company today is not just her personal achievement but a sign of changes in society. She sincerely hopes that every year fewer girls and women will hear such arguments at interviews. Tetiana entered the energy sector as an economist. Working in a predominantly male environment, she quickly realized: to be taken seriously, you need to prove your competence twice as much. This experience eventually shaped her approach to management — through responsibility, service, and working with people.
The beginning of the full-scale invasion became a moment of truth for the company. That was when difficult decisions had to be made without ready-made scenarios. This moment, according to the speaker, was a turning point: the team realized it was capable of taking responsibility, acting together, and withstanding high levels of tension. Thus, a sense of true teamwork was born.
To ensure continuous operation and service delivery to consumers, securing critical departments became the priority. Backup power was organized; during air raid alerts, employees do not stay at their desks — everyone goes to the established shelter. At the same time, fully functional workstations with Wi-Fi are set up in the shelter, so customer service does not stop. An “Invincibility Point” was also officially registered at the central office, which in 2022–2023 became a place where people could warm up, connect to the internet, charge gadgets, drink tea or coffee, and simply feel safe.
Despite all technical solutions, Tetiana Shutka emphasized: the biggest challenge in a crisis is personnel. Constant stress required a fundamentally new approach to working with the team. The company introduced systemic psychological and social support for colleagues. Despite the common opinion that “entertainment is not timely,” the company consciously organized joint events, trips, and meetings. According to the speaker, this forms a sense of having a shoulder to lean on and internal support. Furthermore, there were no layoffs at Prykarpatenergotrade — only a redistribution of duties took place. The result is indicative: only two employees left the company in 2022. Everyone else stayed and continues to work to this day.
With the onset of mass power outages, the company realized: the consumer needs not only kilowatts but communication, honesty, and partnership. Although the supplier does not perform the direct cut-offs, Prykarpatenergotrade informed consumers about the schedules. This caused a wave of negativity but simultaneously created space for dialogue. People had the opportunity to speak out, even if these were emotional and difficult conversations. And this turned out to be an important element of crisis resilience. In parallel, the company began offering comprehensive solutions: hybrid solar power plants, electrician call services, and energy efficiency tools. The goal is to help households, communities, and businesses become more energy-independent.
Today, 82% of Prykarpatenergotrade staff are women. All crisis decisions, communications, and work organization during the war were implemented by them. 100% of customer service center managers are women. Their job is one of the hardest, as they daily balance between regulations, laws, and empathy for people who come when “everything is bad.” According to Tetiana Shutka, women know how to explain complex things simply, maintain focus under stress, and act quickly. They can talk about electricity imports and, a few minutes later, start a generator to keep the center running. At the same time, she honestly admits: despite the high percentage of women in service, there are currently only 35% in top management. And this is a zone for future growth.
Summarizing, Tetiana Shutka emphasized: the energy sector is changing. It is no longer just substations, wires, and “men in helmets.” It is a broad industry of opportunities — technical, managerial, service-oriented — open to women as well. She urged not to be afraid of starting from basic positions, obtaining specialized education, looking towards renewable energy, and not stopping due to stereotypes: “We stand at the beginning of a new era. And it is important that women are not isolated exceptions, but part of this history — the one that no turbulence will break.”
The first panel was moderated by Yaryna Skorokhod, Co-chair of the EBA Energy Committee. She highlighted that such success stories build confidence in the necessity to move forward, despite stereotypes and crisis circumstances. According to her, the energy sector today is undergoing not just a transformation — a new era is forming, and women’s leadership within it is becoming an organic part of the changes: “When you listen to such speeches, you realize: this is no longer a ‘non-female’ profession. It is simply becoming normal. And in this new energy sector, women play a key role.”
