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Volume 6 • Issue 4 • July 2006 |
Printer Friendly Version | Our Perspective |
World Cup Afterthoughts
By the time you read this, the Football (let's call it what it is!) World Cup will be behind us. By all accounts it was a success, athletically and financially, with two billion spectators watching the games. What stands out is the true internationality of the events, with people from all continents cheering for their favorite teams. This was apparent locally in a recent business meeting where people in small huddles around the room discussed the results of the matches animatedly. Their enthusiasm extended to teams from around the globe.
The spark of this conversation carried over to business. Through common interest in sport, professional ties were established as well. Professionals benefit from being connected, or networked, in our industry. Those new to the U.S. may have slightly more difficulty making good connections. You will find some additional thoughts and tips in this edition of our newsletter. Even away from football, it might provide some inspiration to strike up an interesting conversation.
Your Friends at Collarini| Upcoming Events |
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NACE International Central Area Conference October 1 - 4, 2006 Wyndham Greenspoint Hotel Houston, Texas Learn more about important developments in protective coatings and corrosion control in the industry. Technical papers, Education courses, Golf Tournament |
The Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies & LIOGA's Gulf Coast Prospect Expo September 25 - 27, 2006 Cajundome Convention Center Lafayette, Louisiana
Including "Visualize the Possibilities" Technical sessions in a 3-D Stereo Immersive Environment using a state-of-the-art 175-seat auditorium at the Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE) facility Prospect and Vendor Exhibits, Lunch Presentations
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| Upstream News |
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Key Components for Retaining New Technical Employees
The energy industry is unique, yet it has one common factor with all industries; employees are its most valuable asset. The companies with the highest retention rates are usually the most successful. According to one survey, 1 out of 25 employees quits the first day on the job; however, a different survey points out that employees who have gone through a structured onboarding program are 69% more likely to be with the company after three years than those who didn't go through such a program.
Are you and your company doing everything feasible for your new employees? Collarini's Career Management staff suggests the following:
Your new employees' perception of the company begins with the interview, but it extends through the whole hiring process. In our March 06 newsletter, we discussed the important practical steps within the interview itself. Extending that to the entire event, start by comparing how your company interviews with how you hire and assimilate new graduates. Most companies have nicely prepared, very organized campus recruiting programs that are interesting to students. Don't forget to prepare in the same way for the actual hiring. In the Houston Chronicle, Nora Dool, Human Resources Director for Maritech Resources, stated she sends personal hand-written notes to new employees as soon as they have accepted their offers. That is a very welcoming action. Then, everyone expects the first week on the job to include paperwork and long and sometimes boring how-to's about the company. This can be made more welcoming by having the best or funniest speaker in the company take a group through that paperwork process rather than someone who might be less comfortable in front of groups. It is important to provide new employees with an internal guide and an external coach. The guide is a peer assigned to assist the new employee with the "how-to's", the "best spots", and the "easiest routes." This is different from a mentor; it is more like a tour or fishing guide. The new employee may be an excellent fisherman or even a world traveler but unfamiliar with this lake or city. The external coach is more a mentor. Having an external coach rather than an internal mentor is necessary, because successful mentor relationships can develop only over time as mutual respect grows. In fact, the most successful mentors are never "assigned". The new employee must be able to ask certain questions and voice certain concerns in a safe and confidential environment where he or she knows that the coach is his or her advocate rather than a future competitor for advancement. The SPE is one organization that sponsors a volunteer e-mentor program. In future newsletters, we will suggest more ways to make your interview, hiring, and onboarding processes more organized, impressive, and fun.
The following biographies are just a small sampling of the kind of talent available in
our talent pool of over 12,000 experts. Please call our placement managers if you are interested in learning more about these professionals, or check out our website for more candidates.
Engineering Technician with five years of experience as a technician following 11 years as a lease operator with major oil companies. Strong skills in reservoir and production engineering support. Highly skilled with decline curve, production data, input of well test data, and completion chart preparation. Experienced in data acquisition. Additional skills include wellbore schematics, daily operations, cost analysis, and safety and environmental regulatory compliance. Computer skills include Excel, Freelance Graphics, Lotus 1-2-3, Oracle Discoverer, and R & R Report Writer. Ask for TE90. Drilling Engineer with a BS in Chemical Engineering and over 20 years of experience at various positions in drilling, including mud engineer, rig supervisor, drilling engineer, research engineer, technical instructor, drilling engineering advisor, drilling superintendent, drilling project manager, and general manager of a small service company. Offshore and land experience. Geographic experience includes California, Texas and Louisiana, GOM, Virgin Islands, Canada, UK, Norway, Holland, Abu Dhabi, Somalia, Nigeria, Brazil, Venezuela, Kazakhstan and Indonesia. Fluent in Portuguese and Spanish. Ask for D172. Planning and Scheduling Consultant with a BS degree in Engineering Management and over 20 years of experience supporting petrochemical, industrial, commercial, and institutional projects. Recent experience includes development of operations scheduling processes implemented company-wide, and identifying and scheduling resources necessary to complete drilling, completion and operations requirements. Computer skills include Primavera P3, P3ea/c for Construction, Expedition 201, Excel, Access, MS Project, WinEst and WinCost. Ask for PU338. Process Engineer with a MS degree in Chemical Engineering and over 20 years of experience in engineering management, gasification technology, chemical process, and upstream oil and gas operations. Process design experience includes leading process design packages, PFD and P&ID development, process simulations, equipment design and specification, and detailed engineering support. Experienced with testing and evaluating new equipment and methods, training field personnel, development of cost estimates, start-up, and operations support. Ask for F671. Senior Geoscientist with a PhD in Geology and 24 years of solid exploration and development experience in the Gulf of Mexico deep water and shelf as well as in south Louisiana. Has seismic 2D/3D interpretation skills using various software, such as GeoGraphix, Landmark, SMT, and Geoquest/Charisma. Has amplitude/AVO analysis, and reservoir modeling software skills using Stratimagic, VoxelGeo, and Petrel. Experienced in hydrocarbon discoveries, salt tectonics, and regional geological studies. Ask for G965. Senior Geologist with a MS in Geology and 26 years of experience in applied stratigraphy, reservoir characterization, and multidisciplinary studies in the international and domestic realms. Has completed ten major studies in six basins, leading to full reservoir modeling, and completed over two dozen major integrated sequence stratigraphy studies in eleven basins worldwide. Has hundreds of smaller rock-log-seismic calibration studies in over a dozen different basins and numerous plays. Highlighted areas include both deepwater and shelf Gulf of Mexico, Gulf coast, Permian Basin, mid-Continent U.S, as well as West Africa, Siberia, and South America. Ask for G1260. Review thousands of talented people in more than 30 upstream disciplines at
Adapting in an International Environment Volkswagen has struggled in the U.S. market. One of their German design engineers began researching the problem. He noted that Americans treat their automobiles like rolling living rooms, and he couldn't understand it, until he spent grueling hours on a Greyhound bus and also saw the vast distances and long time we spend in our cars. He began to understand why cupholders are important to us. A large company team, mostly German, spent more than a year traveling the country to better understand our culture, so the cars they designed would be more appealing to U.S. consumers. They have started similar cultural immersions in China and India, two growing markets. This extraordinary effort will surely help their success. In the same way, our understanding of other cultures will have an impact on our success. Our workforce is more global than ever. Global communication is simple, and people are very mobile. About 20% of the interviews we conduct with candidates are with non-U.S. residents, and that number continues to grow. Companies are spending more effort managing the benefits and challenges of the cultural diversity that comes with a global workforce. It is also important for each employee to address the culture issues in his or her workplace. On the personal side, there is much to learn to embrace a new culture. But in the workplace, there are other things to consider. One Asian culture's respect for superiors in the workplace can look like a failure to understand and perform in our U.S. culture. At the center of effective global relationships is our ability to communicate. Effective managers must reach out to understand employees' cultural behavior, but employees have to make the effort as well. So where do you start? If you are new to American culture, start by observing how people interact with each other. Start a dialogue with a colleague about things of global interest, such as the Olympics or the World Cup. Inquire about families, and begin to establish relationships. Talk about the differences in university experiences … or the similarities. Attend your professional organization meetings often. Observe and absorb. And don't forget to have fun exploring new cultures.
Connecting the Industry's Experts...
Reservoir Solutions the Industry Trusts...
The Collarini Associates
petroleum engineers and geoscientists specialize in evaluating oil and gas reservoirs. Specific projects include integrated field studies, acquisition evaluations, independent reserve appraisals, and exploration and exploitation prospect generation and assessment. Our full divestment services include creation and hosting of electronic and physical data rooms in addition to the technical evaluation. Our teams in Houston and New Orleans are very experienced and stand ready to help you on projects of any size. Try us!
Guiding Careers to the Next Level...
Collarini Career Management
applies its deep understanding of the career paths of technical professionals in the E&P and EPC communities to help companies and professionals build successful organizations and careers. We leverage Collarini's unique combination of industry knowledge and technical expertise to guide companies and individuals during transition, training existing employees for high performance, and designing customized technical training plans for companies and individuals.
Visit us on the web!
Talent Pool
www.collarini.com
Upstream Careers
About Us
Collarini Energy Staffing Inc.
is a full-service agency specializing in the placement of energy and EPC personnel and including the disciplines listed below (other supporting personnel are managed upon request):
Accountants and supporting personnel
Administrative assistants
Business analysts
Civil engineers
Clerks
Database administrators
Drilling engineers
Drilling operations supervisors
Electrical/Instrument engineers
Geologists
Geophysicists
Health, safety and environmental personnel
Landmen and supporting personnel
Management personnel
Material/Corrosion engineers
Naval architects
Operations supervisors
Petrophysicists
Process engineers
Procurement personnel
Production/Completion engineers
Production operations supervisors
Project managers
Reservoir engineers
Subsea engineers
Surface/Topsides engineers
Technical writers
Technicians, drafting and graphic
Technicians, engineering
Technicians, geoscience
Contact Us
11111 Richmond Avenue,
Suite 126
Houston, Texas 77082
832.251.0553
4200 South I-10 Service Road,
Suite 230
Metairie, Louisiana 70001
504.887.7127
www.collarini.com