By james art 
The Traci Cook joined the oil and gas industry in 1994 at Chesapeake Energy, where it was immediately taken from the industry’s entrepreneurial stud.
“No matter what role you played, there was an element of” Wildcatter, “she said. “Every day was a new day.”
On one of those new days, Cook was charged with building a tax division for the newly hatched Chesapik. It was a special challenge because she had no previous experience in the tax area. What he had was the confidence of the founder of Chesapik Rar McClandon and Finance Officer Mark Rowland.
“They trusted me and gave me the opportunity after the opportunity,” Cook said. This trust paid for the company.
“I learned a lot about myself and my ability to build a quality team for the next five years,” she said. “This led me to increase the Vice President of Accounting, responsible for financial reporting, tax and forecasts.”
The opportunities will continue to come for Cook in their career because changes in the company and industry continued to come and it was open to deal with them.
“Between the evolution of science that directs the oil and the gas industry to continuous market cycles, you have learned to quickly be universal and open to change. I quickly realized that I had a remarkable capacity to change, “she said. “Over the years, I have told many young people: you will either love or hate this industry. Those who loved him survived in my opinion. “
Cook estimates that Chesapeake has hired about 300 when it started in 1994, of which about 30 are in accounting. By the time she left to join Rescent Resources 20 years later, the company has 12,000 people on its salaries, of which about 500 were in accounting.
The growth rate has led to changes in her career goals. When she started in Chesapike, her main goal was simply “to maintain”. She wanted to learn everything possible for the industry so that she could become a good leader. She also admitted that she could not do it all alone.
“Many of the challenges I encountered were the result of rapid growth in Chesapeake, which required the construction of a strong team to support growth,” Cook said. “In addition to the years of experience in Chesapeake and the confidence of ASCENT CEO Jeff Fisher and Brooks Schugart’s financial officer, we were able to build a highest level of accounting team at ASCENT. I think it is important to build a team that includes members who do not think all the same, and those you consider smarter. It is productive not to be intimidated by the intelligence of others. There will always be someone who knows more than you. Bring your skills to the table and learn from theirs. “
The quote often attributed to President Theodore Roosevelt (“People don’t care how much you know until they understand how much you are interested”) is important for the philosophy of Cook leadership.
“I think it is very important for your team to know that you are not just interested in the company, but you also take care deep for each of them,” she said. “It was important for me to build an environment that is energetic and positive where we are celebrated. I feel strong that if your team is happy and challenged in the office, they will have a positive energy to love and value their families at the end of every day. “
To this end, Cook believes in placing the bar high and leaves the energy of each individual to charge the team. The results are reflected in the department as a whole.
“We want to have a place on the table and this requires the construction of a lot of knowledge in not only the company, but also in the industry,” she said, adding that she is joy when she sees the members of her team to build bridges with the other disciplines in the company.