Allison "Allie" Kennedy Thurmond, Ph.D., serves as Vice President North America Lithium Asset Management at Equinor since August 2018, focusing on asset management and the development of the value chain for Direct Lithium Extraction in North America. Previous roles include Vice President of Gulf of Mexico Exploration and Exploration Manager for Mexico Assets, where management of exploration assets and growth initiatives in Mexico were key responsibilities. Prior to Equinor, Thurmond worked at Statoil as Exploration Manager for Regional Gulf of Mexico and held positions in R&D, including Manager in Research and Development and Department Leader for Global Basin Analysis. Earlier experience includes a senior geologist role at Norsk Hydro and teaching assistant duties at the University of Texas at Dallas, as well as positions as Computer Specialist and Supervisory Survey Statistician at the US Census Bureau. Educational qualifications consist of a PhD and MSc in Geosciences from the University of Texas at Dallas, along with several business-related credentials from Harvard Business School Online.