An Organized Approach: Challenges Faced by Today’s New Engineers in thePetroleum Industry

摘要

Today the knowledge gap between the 'seasonedprofessional' and 'new hire' to the petroleum industry hasreached a new level of disparity. Due to market trends and jobavailabilities in prior years, many engineers have been turnedaway from futures in oil and gas. But with the current globaldemand for energy at an all time high, companies are nowlooking for fresh faces to fill their empty seats.It is not out of the norm for a new engineer to step into a roleand see a dramatic split among his peer group of engineers.Many of those in the industry today have on average 10 to 15years experience working in the oil and gas industry, whichreflects the time of the last major market upswing. Thechallenge arises in bridging generational as well astechnological gaps to allow for quality job performance andprecise communication among varied experience levels ofengineers.In navigating the new profession, the right questions need tobe asked by the young engineer. Nothing can be assumed ortaken for granted. No matter what role the engineer holds inthe disciplines of drilling, completions, reservoirs, oroperations, a level of responsibility will be assigned but wemust ensure it comes with clear definitions and expectations.There is not always a choice of tasks or even the luxury oftransition periods in today's oil and gas industry. Morepositions are becoming available each day with a smaller poolof applicants who poses the desired years of experience. Thisforces companies to fill openings with many candidates freshfrom college and in some instances, with minimal hands-onexperience. This paper will be a guide for today's newengineer with suggestions for how to succeed in this essentialglobal industry.