She retired from her role as the global procurement vice president for the oil major in 2013 and has more than 35 years of experience in this field, including board positions at the Institute for Supply Management and National Minority Supplier Development Council.
"We are delighted to welcome Jean to Fortescue's board of directors," Fortescue chairman Andrew Forrest said.
"Her broad international experience and business acumen will be an extremely valuable addition to our Board. She joins a strong and diverse board of directors who all contribute a wealth of expertise to Fortescue."
Baderschneider will also be the third woman on Fortescue's board, and like Forrest, heads a slavery-fighting organisation.
"She is the inaugural chief executive of the Global Fund to End Slavery, which aims to co-ordinate a global strategy to eliminate slavery as a sustainable element of society," the Australian Financial Review reported.
"Forrest launched the Walk Free Foundation in 2012 and the Global Freedom Network last year."
Fortescue, which is invested in gas-fired power infrastructure, received praise from the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association for criticising Western Australia's domestic gas reservation policy in mid-2014.
