A good time to reflect

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times....” so began Dickens’Tale of Two Cities describing the events leading to the French Revolution. That opening thought reminds me of the volatility of our industry and how we can indeed go from healthy one year to struggling the next.

This year, Mustang, the company I co-founded with Paul Redmon and Felix Covington, will celebrate 20 years of operation. When my two partners and I launched our venture in mid-1987, the oil and gas industry, including the offshore segment, was in an abyss. Since 1983, the business had plummeted, with established companies shutting their doors, startup attempts floundering, and layoffs approaching 40%. Loyalty to employers, employees, sub-contractors, and operators alike was almost non-existent. The consequence was an industry that was not very healthy.

In contrast, today’s oil and gas picture has some similarities to the good times of the late ‘70s and early ’80s, when there was a scramble to staff up for the tremendous influx of work that everyone was enjoying. At that time, companies were outbidding each other for the best people, and very few organizations were focused on the long-term. Similarly, companies today are again desperately searching for engineers, skilled technologists, and experienced crafts persons. They are luring veteran personnel from one another, just to help solve short-term project needs. With that approach, nobody wins.

Having experienced both ends of the spectrum, our founding trio had another vision. We believed then and still do fervently today that great companies thrive because of their people and that how people are treated by company leadership separates the successful companies from the weak ones. Further, we believed that building teams with those key people was an essential ingredient to project success. New technologies will continue to be replaced by even newer ones. But it’s the people who will endure. Within a few months of our existence, we adopted the credoPeople Oriented...Project Driven, which we still use prominently today.

Is there a secret formula for attracting and retaining quality people? Is there a special recipe for keeping employees energized and productive? I don’t really think so. Rather, I believe the way companies are successfully built is through a single word - CULTURE.

Three specific areas of company culture can, I believe, convert personal effort and responsibility into well run organizations and a healthier industry.

Team work: Project execution is done by teams, not individuals. Any project, small or mega, relies on the combined efforts of multiple engineering disciplines - mechanical, structural, process, instrument, and electrical. Additionally, there are multiple support functions - procurement, administration, HSE, etc. that are a necessary part of the equation. All must communicate and interface closely, supporting each other so that all can maximize their contribution. Then, they must reach out and embrace the other project participants - the numerous vendors, sub-contractors and clients - trying to make them all look like heroes. Special interests must be put aside in favor of the outcome. Independent “silos” must be eliminated and information shared. Behavior needs to be “other oriented” and supportive. Completed milestones need to be recognized and celebrated by all. If this cohesive attitude is not fostered from within, there is a recipe for project disaster.

Family involvement: Projects are demanding, with a tight schedule often being the driver. Long hours, overtime and weekend work become the norm. Attention needs to be focused on building a family of families. Camaraderie is built by including everyone so that the effort can be understood and appreciated. That means recognition given to everyone connected to the project, whether they are at home, at school, or on the job itself. Frequent offsite team-building, with group and family functions that focus on fun and spirit, can assist in keeping an organization healthy.

Generation building: Growing and supporting a new generation of young engineers, technical graduates, and specially skilled workers take a concerted effort. While there are perhaps more engineering students enrolled in universities today than at any previous time, encouraging and cultivating them needs to be a key management strategic objective. Building a flourishing industry starts even at the high school level and below. Students need to be encouraged by potential employers in our industry to pursue an educational direction that will help fill critical industry needs five, 10 and 15 years down the road.

Once hired, new employees must be mentored by senior managers and veteran leadership. They should be given meaningful assignments and allowed to demonstrate their abilities, under the observation of, and with guidance from, company leaders. This approach can often reduce the time needed to make an employee productive, can give that person a sense of belonging, and can greatly increase overall project productivity.

We are fortunate that the global economic indicators in our industry are pointing toward continued prosperity. New technologies and capabilities developed to identify, exploit and process offshore oil and gas reserves have led to another buoyant period in the industry’s history. In order to keep the momentum going, though, we need to stay focused on the people that make it happen and reflect on how best to build a culture and solid teams that will continue to get the job done.

William G. Higgs
Mustang Engineering

This page reflects viewpoints on the political, economic, cultural, technological, and environmental issues that shape the future of the petroleum industry. Offshore Magazine invites you to share your thoughts. Email your Beyond the Horizon manuscript to Eldon Ball at[email protected].