Shell appoints 'bravest woman in oil' Ann Pickard to run US Arctic program ROYAL Dutch Shell is moving its Australian head to run operations in the US Arctic Ocean, a person familiar with the matter says, as the oil major attempts to recover from a series of drilling setbacks in the icy north. Ann Pickard, who has been overseeing billions of dollars of investments in Australian gas-export projects, would take up a new role in the US on June 1, the person said.