Sinta Sirait: Woman in Charge

Although there are more of them than just a few years ago, women in top executive positions remain a relatively rare breed. Freeport Indonesia’s Sinta Sirait talks to Bruce Emond about what it takes to reach the top.

It’s 5:30 p.m. on a Friday, and the respite of the weekend awaits. Sinta Sirait, dressed in black pants and an aquamarine “Freeport Cares” shirt worn for a social outreach event earlier in the day, is one of the last stragglers as the office shuts down.

It’s nothing new, for the executive vice president of giant mineral mining company PT Freeport Indonesia is known to put in long hours. Colleagues and friends talk reverently about her discipline and focus; she herself says she thrives on the pressure of fighting the fires that come with running one of the country’s biggest companies.

“I’m a believer that you can learn responsibilities. Once you’re in a decision-making position, with this company it’s not as simple as textbook stuff -- if you do this, then this follows. And making the right decisions is what is important regardless of your gender,” says Sinta, who divides her time between the company’s Jakarta headquarters and its Papua mining site.

“But I consider myself lucky.”

She speaks in the concise and precise language of a scientist, which she is by educational background, but she is not a deadly serious, humorless talking head. Her father, a legislator, wanted her to be a scientist, and she quips that like most children she chose to rebel. “I think I’m always a bit contradictory with my father.”

Sinta, 40, credits her parents for giving her the grounding to get ahead in the world. Her legislator father, one of the founders of the Golkar political grouping, taught her that pursuing a career was a process involving logic and responsiblity, while her German housewife mother showed her the importance of discipline.

Raised in Bandung (she has an older brother and sister), she describes her family as “somewhat controlled”, with her parents making sure that their children were given the opportunity to learn about life.

“I think they always wanted us to learn how other people lived, even if it was in Lembang or Cianjur. I think they wanted to remind us that we have to know how others live. I felt I was ready for the world because of those opportunities.”

After completing her degree at the University of Indonesia, she decided she wanted to go to the United States to learn more about life. She asked her father to sponsor her – “I don’t think he thought twice” – and left for the States.

It was a great learning experience in many ways, she says.

“The Americans are very clever about packaging and the business world,” says Sinta, who worked first at the Colorado Chamber of Commerce before she moved to Freeport’s New Orleans headquarters for a year. “And I learned a lot about confidence. It was quite late in life for me, I was already in my 20s, and my English was not very good, because my mother spoke German with us at home. So I learned about interacting with people.”

She was called back to Indonesia to work for Freeport here, and has spent most of her career with the company (she left for a short period to work for an international bank in Jakarta). She refers to her good fortune in her career, and acknowledges that there are still hurdles to women achieving equality in the workplace.

But she adds that women have to do their part.

“Well, it’s not only internal factors, but it’s from yourself if you want to be treated as an equal. You can’t scream for respect, you must be able to lead people, give proper direction and be competent in your knowledge in the area you are responsible. And as an individual you have to have integrity, because that is the only capital you can take with you anywhere.”

Sinta, who is unmarried, believes that gender equality means showing unquestioned commitment to the job. “You need to be ready to sacrifice certain things, including in your personal life, to do the best job. And using gender as an excuse is not OK.”

Careful not to play into patronizing stereotypes of the “feminine touch” or their ilk, Sinta does concede that a more inclusive female perspective is a help “when egos are involved.” Although a high position automatically accords respect, Sinta chuckles when asked if she still gets the occasional ‘what is she doing here?’ look.

“I put myself in other people’s shoes. Not everybody has similar perceptions. I agree position does help, but it’s about building relationships. ... You have to have the confidence for that, and I put time into it. And if someone is still not happy, then c’est la vie.”

Photo by Adi Wahono

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