Backing the future of energy with data
An early exponent of data science with a firm belief in its potential to make a significant contribution to transforming the energy sector, Aflah has spent nearly a decade immersing himself in learning the technology and its applications. He speaks about his experience of working on global projects that help Shell leverage data and take crucial decisions that can contribute towards energy transition.
In 2016, when Aflah assessed Malaysia's energy industry’s readiness to utilise his data science skills optimally, he realised he was ahead of his time. From Aflah’s vantage point, the sector with complex supply chains, procuring and generating energy from multiple sources and in multiple forms could gain maximum benefit from data science. It was a match made in heaven, a place for him to work towards the energy needs of the future, while mastering other aspects of the industry to widen his own skill set. “I belong to a country with a thriving energy sector and energy reliability, and sustainability directly affects me and my people. It’s also one of those rare sectors where my analysis and insights can make a tangible difference,” he says.
Committed to employing his skills to shape the future of energy, Aflah decided to patiently wait for the right time to join the industry. While he waited, he decided to work as a researcher acquiring skills in the areas of machine learning and natural language processing. And in 2018, with a wider recognition of the application of data science, he joined a known energy sector company in Malaysia.
In 2022, Aflah came across a video in which Shell data scientists from all over the world came together to solve a problem. “Being in an environment where a diverse set of professionals can share ideas and have an impactful collaboration was exciting to me,” he says. The conversations he had during the interviews cemented his decision and he became the first recruit from Malaysia in Shell’s global data science team and just a year into his current role, he’s eager to see just how much his expertise can contribute to improving the company’s efficiencies, as well as progressing the larger energy transition narrative.
Aflah’s passion towards his work and time at Shell reflects in every statement and detail he shares. What keeps him excited and inspired at Shell, he says, is the diverse nature of the problems he gets to solve. “I've been constantly stretched to understand different facets of the business and dive deeper into the problems that I need to solve. A lot of this information is new to me and this level of depth of learning accelerates my development and never lets the work become mundane,” he says.
The varied nature of the challenges he works to solve also gives him the opportunity to interact with and learn from experienced stakeholders with diverse backgrounds from all over the world. “My role requires me to closely interact with people to understand their perspectives and pain points and then again to relay the complicated data analysis in ways that are easy for them to understand and can convince them to employ the solution being offered,” he says. And the way these interactions and collaborations are held across Shell, Aflah says, help him become a better problem solver and transformed him into a person with more empathy.
This culture, Aflah recollects, stood out to him from his first few days at Shell. From being encouraged to ask questions without worrying about how irrelevant they may seem, to being empowered to offer a counter opinion even to senior stakeholders in meetings, he cites several examples to highlight the Shell culture he has come to appreciate. “My team members are in different time zones. In other large multinational environments, the expectation would typically be to schedule meetings and discussions based at a time that suits the majority or the superiors. However, here at Shell people go out of their way to try and arrange meetings at a time that is slightly more convenient for me as well,” he says.
Another aspect of the culture that Aflah has experienced and believes is unique to Shell is the environment where he can approach his managers to talk about his personal development aspirations and have them actively participate in planning his growth trajectory. “My managers give me immense clarity on the work that I do, the impact that it has on the organisation and the impact it can have on my personal growth,” he says. “This level of transparency gives me a sense of belonging and a purpose where I feel encouraged to go the extra mile to contribute to the organisation.”
It's this transparency that enables Aflah to not just advance his own skill and understanding of the sector, but to also confidently say that the work he delivers helps businesses make decisions that enable them to achieve their energy transition in ways that are viable and sustainable. “When transitioning, the focus cannot just be how fast one can get there, it also needs to be about how affordable it can be for people and how viable it can be for businesses to be able to continue to offer it. It’s a tough problem to solve. We can help businesses optimise, take better decisions and transition successfully with the data and our analysis of it,” he says.