Phillips 66 named top Indigenous STEM employer

Phillips 66 has been named a top-50 workplace for Indigenous STEM professionals by the American Indian Science and Engineering Society. 

“I am extremely excited about this,” said Phillips 66 Senior Lab Technician Lacy Hamilton of the Cherokee tribe, who is on the analytical forensics team at the Phillips 66 Research Center in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. “I grew up around Phillips 66 and saw how active it is in the Native American community. Phillips 66 really does care about diversity and inclusion for underrepresented groups like mine.”  

That commitment has landed the company on the society’s elite list of workplaces, a nod to its efforts to recruit and support Native Americans in scientific, technology, engineering and math fields. It is one of many accolades Phillips 66 has received over the past year for its inclusion and diversity efforts. 

The company was named to Forbes’ America’s Best Large Employers and Best Employers for Diversity lists, where it jumped more than 200 spots. It was also named a Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality by the Human Rights Campaign and received the 2021 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. Learn more about the company’s diverse employees in its 2021 Human Capital Management Report.  

In awarding its top-50 designation, AISES rates companies based on criteria that includes Indigenous recruiting efforts and diversity commitments.  

“Phillips 66 is proud to be on this list. It shows our commitment to recruiting and retaining Native American professionals in scientific fields, as part of a diverse workforce that helps our company thrive,” said Phillips 66 Senior Advisor of Inclusion and Diversity Yeni Ortega. “We want everyone at Phillips 66 to feel welcome and valued.” 

To Hamilton, the company does that and more.  

In Bartlesville, she belongs to the Native American Network, an employee resource group that has doubled its membership in the past few years to 210 members. Hamilton also volunteers in the community, teaching at science camps and planning National Chemistry Week events at local schools. 

“My two biggest passions are Native American culture and STEM education for children,” she said. “And to be involved in both for Phillips 66 has been really fulfilling.”