Behind the business

Stories of transformation through the eyes of those who have been at the forefront of global change

The term legacy evokes associations with resilience, fortitude, adaption, reputation, and impact, amongst others. At ICIS, we cherish our 151 year heritage as one built on trust, transparency and accountability. As a business, we’ve seen a great deal of change over the years but the constant factor has always been our people, who are passionate about what they do and the contribution they make to shaping the world. Whether that be by creating opportunities for companies across the globe to source recycled resins more effectively, helping steer customers through their energy transition or ensuring that chemicals are received at the right place and time to support health care - our people are helping tackle some of the world's biggest problems every day.

Nigel Davis
_{Insight Editor and Training Course Director}

Nigel Davis holds his own personal legacy within ICIS and the Chemicals industry. He is synonymous with bringing to life the all encompassing impact chemicals have on all we do, everyday .

As Insight Editor and also a Course Director with ICIS Training, Nigel has a broad and deep understanding of the Chemicals industry acquired from his over 30 years with the business commenting on and analysing sector companies and markets.

Barbara

Then

“When I started with the business over 30 years ago, the industry and world were in a very different place. I’ve been at the forefront of witnessing and participating in helping the world evolve through the way we use chemicals. It is a big, multi-trillion dollar industry that has a has a huge influence on our daily lives."

Using the term ‘wholly entrenched in the chemicals industry’, is an apt way to describe Nigel’s career.

"I have chaired ICIS conferences held with big financial players, assisted on panel discussions at major industry gatherings and at key ICIS seminars. Alongside my role with ICIS, I have also held the role of President of an important European chemical marketing and strategy organisation and participated in UK government reviews of the chemicals sector."

“Writing about an expanding chemicals industry in such an established, growing data and information business like ICIS is, for me, workwise, about as good as it gets. "

"When I started, what I relished most, and what has likely kept me enthralled after all these years, is that from the outset, I was able to dig deep, praise and criticise. I met influential senior management and other movers and shakers in a business that was building on the boom years of the sixties and seventies.

As it changed, my coverage on what was then a newsletter began to go digital. We launched an on-line news service – a 24 hour, truly global operation. We produced digitised output – databases, compact disks. We did things differently. "

Now and to the future

"The business is now built around more internal analysis, more internal data and much more cross-functional collaboration.

Of course, it is the people that make a good job and a good working environment. I would always encourage someone to take the opportunities to look outside their role and to better understand what it is that is driving the wider business.

Get to know new people; try to understand what it is they do. Together we contribute to the success of ICIS. Therein lies opportunity for growth, for developing new interests, for developing your career."

Looking into the future is, in current times, somewhat of a perplexing experience. On one hand, many are excited to get back to what we know and love, our routine. On the other hand, it’s also fair to say that many also feel that we can’t go back to what we were, the experiences of the past two years has pushed and challenged us in ways that make it impossible to accept what was.

“One of the parts of my job that I've missed most over the pandemic, has been not being able to travel to meet contacts, to see where it is they work, to understand better what they do, and why they do it. Conferences give us great opportunities for networking. Presenting ICIS Training for me has meant meeting thousands of customers face to face. We have innovated and found new ways of connecting with customers but face to face will always be unique."

"Customers are truly at the heart of all we do, and our goal, always, is to understand them deeply so that we get to the crux of their needs and that of the market. This is how we’ve managed to be around for 151 years - and by constantly innovating to provide new solutions, identify opportunities, and help customers mitigate risk. That may be a standard thing for companies to say, but it comes through when you are passionately invested in customers results and shaping the world as I see my colleagues are every day."

"One benefit that has developed from the pandemic is an increased focus on sustainability across all sectors, including chemicals. I'm looking forward to using our data and intelligence to continue to innovate and help lead our chemicals' customers through their journey to more sustainable ways of operating that benefits both them and the world. Chemicals are vital to all we do, everyday, and are integral to helping the world lower C02 emissions. Being part of this will be one the greatest and most rewarding challenges of the foreseeable future. "

“The day-to-day drive and excitement of news remains; of getting the story, making the comment and pushing the finished article out to customers”

Cath Morris
_{Head of Data Acquisition}

Cath is well known in the business for her technical expertise as well as her diversity and inclusion, and LGBT+ advocacy. The energy she brings to both is part of her legacy and has been instrumental in shaping the culture of ICIS.

Roger Danger

Kaori Shelley

Then

Cath joined ICIS in 2015 as a Data Team Leader working within the Energy Editorial team. She has seen first hand the exponential increase in ICIS' data and analytics capabilities and has been there for the journey from incremental improvements to the full throttle acceleration that ICIS and the world is experiencing now.

“I’ve seen lots of progress since I joined, right up to now when we are in the midst of our data transformation and vision realisation into a truly world class data and analytics firm.

When I joined in January 2015, I was part of a four person data team, all based in our Holborn, London office. As a business, we were using manual and time consuming methods to acquire and produce energy data, which meant there were a lot of opportunities to improve efficiencies and optimise data in terms of quality and expanding the amount of data for analysis and forecasting. By the end of 2015, ICIS had invested in RPA (robotic process automation) technology and we haven’t looked back. Now, we are able to automate the collection of large amounts of external data, which can be used by analysts and market reporters globally across ICIS, to help provide crucial insight for our customers.

Time savings brought about by the automation of many data collection tasks, also meant members of the team could invest in their own career development and upskill in areas like data visualisation, automated workflows and coding - driving even more innovation and progress.”

Now and to the future

“My current role sits within Data Operations and oversees the ingestion of strategic and commercially viable datasets into the entire ICIS business. We are a global team, with members in Asia and Europe as well as colleagues in other departments all over the globe, which makes for culturally diverse thinking. We regularly catch-up and share our thoughts, ideas and projects in order to ensure we are constantly supporting and learning from each other.

In Data Acquisition, we acquire data using various methods, such as RPA. It’s a fantastic team to be part of and I’m in awe of our analysts who build seriously impressive innovative solutions which eliminate time consuming manual tasks, as well as collate and store meaningful datasets. We learn a lot about new techniques, tools, coding and data management in general."

"There is no sitting still, as this work is constantly evolving along with the technologies that support it. The business is hungrier than ever for data that we can transform into insight for our customers.”

Within the business our employee-led Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) steer initiatives that foster communities and a positive impact for everyone in the business. As an ambassador for our LGBT+ Proud ERG, and Diversity and Inclusion ERG, Cath is proud to work with colleagues across the whole of Risk Solutions Group to help foster a culture where people from marginalised groups feel they have a voice, a safe place to work and the opportunity to contribute to the success of the business.

“I value the autonomy we have to shape our career paths at ICIS and I’m grateful to have been given opportunities to develop during my time here. I’ve been fortunate to travel across different global regions in order to train and learn. One of the most important learning experiences I have had, comes from our Diversity & Inclusion ERGs. These educational events hosted by groups such as EDGE (Ethnically Diverse Group of Employees) forum, have taught me so much about the people I interact with every day. We all have challenges and different perspectives. By gaining a deeper understanding of what that means for those who are different to us, we can learn to be better colleagues. I am a member of the PROUD@RSG ERG, who strive to create a safe and open environment at work where LGBT+ people can bring their whole selves without fear of discrimination. We perform at our best, when we are recognised, respected and celebrated for being who we are.”

"When I’m not working, my favourite past-time is playing piano. I have a small piano in my home office, which I always turn to when I need a break. It’s my therapy and always brings me back to me when I lose myself. That and cake."

I love working at ICIS for several reasons. I am constantly learning; performance, skills, leadership, D&I, there are so many opportunities to grow. I value the flexibility I have to perform my job and be present with my family. I genuinely enjoy working and interacting with my colleagues from all across the global business. We are a large ICIS family but we are a tight one and know how to support each other well.

Barbara Ortner
_{Head of Market Reporting}

When you think of the people in ICIS who are deeply embedded in our journey over the years, Barbara Ortner, Head of Market Reporting, is one of the first who undoubtedly comes to mind.

Then

Barbara joined ICIS 35 years ago, when it was a small company operating out of Paris.

“The ICIS I joined was a small start-up company. I was headhunted from British Sulphur. Humphrey Hinshelwood, who founded the company, interviewed me in Browns Hotel, and they flew me to Paris for lunch with everyone in the garden of his house. There were 10 of us around the table for lunch, and that was the whole of ICIS. Just 10 of us, and now we are over 650.”

“While my children were growing up, I worked for seven years from home, also a radically modern concept in the 90s. Visitors to our home were amazed to see an early computer linking me to Paris, with a clattering teleprinter getting through reams of thermal paper. So different from the technology in my home office now, with its laptop, multiple screens, webcam and ergonomic office chair.”

As she reflects, Barbara notes that it hasn't been just ICIS that has changed over the years, but also the world.

“My first experience of the world of work was a very male one. I was often the only woman in the office, in the meeting, on a flight, or at a conference. My commute to work was on a London underground train full of people smoking. When I joined ICIS though, more than half of the Editorial team were women. The business was very convivial and most photos from those days feature drinks in the office, brasserie dinners and industry events in Monte Carlo. Today, while the pandemic temporarily postponed attending in-person events, our Editorial teams and the industry we work in are still incredibly diverse, multilingual, and truly global.

I was the first one in the company to start a family, and I was allowed six months of maternity absence on half-pay, and a guarantee of my job back. This was considered radical in its day, since it was before the UK had made paid maternity leave a legal requirement and I was suitably grateful.”

Now and to the future

Since that day, in a backyard in Paris, Barbara has seen the world and ICIS evolve.

“It has changed immeasurably since those days, but I have been fortunate to find a line of work I enjoy which gives me variety and independence, and where I have built up knowledge, industry connections and reputation which give me a lot of job satisfaction.

With everyone working from home, it’s hard to imagine when it will be possible to visit the Houston or Singapore teams and find them all in the office together - or go to a conference where you can have hourly meetings with customers, swapping in and out of meeting rooms. But, what gives me confidence is that ICIS has always been one to tackle a challenge head on and come up with innovative solutions .”

“Being with ICIS for 35 years, I have established a huge network of contacts across the chemicals industry, to the benefit of building sources for our Editorial teams, supporting Sales teams and sharing industry knowledge across the organisation.”