Pillars of the Industry

Future Job Security in the

Oil and Gas Industry
Deanna L. Jones, Marathon Oil

The best way to predict the future is to

create it.
Peter F. Drucker (19092005)
I recall the number one question from
potential recruits during campus
recruiting in the late 1990s: The oil and
gas industry will be dead by 2010
what will I do for the rest of my career?
We have arrived at 2014and the
industry is stronger than ever.
The opportunities and challenges
that lie ahead make me wish I was just
starting out rather than looking back
on a 20-year career. Looking forward,
I believe the principles that guided the
most rewarding careers in the past will
continue to apply to careers of the future.

Starting on the Front Lines

Growing up in the Canadian oil patch,
I gained an awareness of the cyclical
and often brutal nature of the oil and gas
industry through my family connections.
The boom of the early 1980s shifted
later to a less robust industry that
greatly affected Calgary graduates
opportunitylandscape.
After graduating into a low cycle for
the industry, I was fortunate enough to

be offered a position by Schlumberger

in one of the companys field offices.
As with many new graduates, I was
eager to use my skills and take on
more challenges than my actual job
description availed me, often to the
chagrin of my first boss. That experience
taught me that its great to start at the
bottom. Although I may not have known
it at the time, beginning at and working
from the ground up provides you with
great perspective and a chance to
see where real value is created on a
daily basis. I formed a much better
appreciation and understanding of the
business from a grassroots standpoint
than I would have formed from sitting in
a corporateoffice.
Ive worked at a few oil and gas
companies as head of human resources,
a position I hold today at Marathon. I
continually see people pass up a field
opportunity or get frustrated with lowerlevel responsibilities because their
expectations after graduation are so high.
I was fortunate. At 21, fresh out
of college, I had the chance to learn
and understand the business and our
industry by working on the frontlines. I
learned that no opportunity is too small

Deanna L. Jones is vice president of human resources and

administrative services at Marathon Oil. She joined the
company in January 2014. Before that, she served as vice
president of human resources and chief commercial officer
for Newfield Exploration Company and as human resource
directorreservoir production group at Schlumberger.
Between 2003 and 2008, Jones worked at Schlumberger
Information Solutions as vice presidentNorth America and
vice president of personnel. From 1993 to 2003, she worked in a variety of
managerial assignments of increasing responsibility for Schlumberger in Canada
and the US. Jones holds a bachelor of commerce degree from the University of
Calgary, Canada, and has completed executive business courses in human
resources at the University of Michigan and in finance at the IMD Business School in
Lausanne, Switzerland.

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when it comes to learning something

of value. No matter the opportunity you
are given, you should do a great job
and take advantage of working close
to the action. Exceptional performance
in any role is the catalyst to future
opportunity. Taking opportunities
that others dont want or wont take
will provide you with insights that will
create differentiated opportunities
along your future career path.

Embrace Change and Technology

People often underestimate the impact of
technology. To give you an example, in
a Speigel Online interview,18 July 2006,
Daniel Yergin, a global energy expert
and author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning
book The Prize, stated that In the 1970s
the frontier for offshore development was
200 meters. Today it is 4000 meters.
Those who work outside the oil
andgas industry often dont realize
howincredible the technology is that
we use every day in the process of
finding and extracting hydrocarbons
around the world.
Even more impressive is the
spirit of creativity, innovation, and
entrepreneurship of the people
continually creating the new
technologies that are driving our
industrys future. Our ability to talk
about our industrys future, with what
we now estimate will be decades of
longevity, feels inconceivable after the
challenges of the mid-1980s.
However, we face more political,
regulatory, and other above-ground
challenges than ever before. This
requires organizations and the people
who drive performance and value
to be incredibly agile and adaptive
along with the industry; yet we know it
is human nature to resist change and
newtechnology.

Over the course of my career, Ive

been involved in several reorganizations
and new technology initiatives. Not all
were successful and none were easy.
On reflection, they were all initiated with
the purpose of ensuring the business
maintained a differentiated competitive
advantage and adapted to new market
realities. The ability to embrace and
lead change is a critical trait that leaders
in any industry must possess. The more
comfortable you are with understanding,
embracing, and guiding change, the
better equipped you will be to navigate
a long-termcareer.
One of the best gifts Ive ever
received from a colleague was
a subscription to Fast Company
magazine. It was a great reminder that
technology, innovation, creativity, and
the entrepreneurial mindset driving
business disruption can come from
anywhere. As you embrace new
technological advances, its important
to look beyond the oil and gas industry
and understand how business and
technology are progressing and
transforming around you so you can
bring fresh ideas of your own into
ourindustry.

Career Paths in a Global Industry

Fresh out of college, one of my first
mistakes was turning down an
opportunity to work in a rural community.
Ultimately, my oil and gas career started
in a rural yet still sizable community
outside Calgary.
Upon understanding that my career
growth was tied to physical moves or
relocations, my family and I embraced
the opportunities we were given. That
meant leaving Canada and our extended
familiespotentially for the duration
of my career. It also meant that my
daughters would have to change schools
about every 3 years. It was a different but
enriching experience for us as a family
more so than if we had chosen to stay in
one location for the extent of my career.
We did take advantage of our world
travels and expand our appreciation of
different cultures. Looking back now, I
can honestly say I am sorry we didnt
experience an even wider diversity of

locations and cultures. These moves

also gave our extended families a
chance visit us in each of our locations.
We learned 2 or 3 years can go by
incredibly fast and when the time came
to relocate, we were always just as sad to
leave our temporary home as we were
excited to take on the next adventure.
If you are open to new and different
experiences, and opportunities are
presented to you, I believe you will have
tremendous flexibility in your career
as well as longevity in the industry.
Ive listened to many stories of families
who have traveled the globe and
experienced our industry from many
vantage points, with highly rewarding
outcomes. The most successful movers
are individuals and families who
embrace the local culture without trying
to recreate life as they knew itbefore.
Moves dont have to be to exotic or
distant locations to create new opportunities.
Whenever you physically move your
household goods, make new friends,
start at a new school, or find new hobbies,
thats change and thats adaptation. For
those moving with companies where
there are familiar faces and rhythm of
work, the transition is much easier than
for our families who support us in our
moves. For moves without the support of
family, integrating into a new community
is challenging in a different way.
You can help create an environment
for a successful transition by
understanding your personal and family
dynamics, and how those might change
if you moved. Explore areas where
you might have future opportunities
and discuss with family and friends
what could make that an interesting
and rewarding experience for you as
well as your family. Before you decide,
envisioning scenarios and planning
help you be prepared for any special
considerations or requirements you
might need to make a move successful,
rather than declining a great opportunity
that could progress your career.

Continuous Learning
The oil and gas industrys depth and
breadth are tremendous. Individuals
who desire the longest and most fulfilling

careers should take the opportunity to

create a solid foundation around their
area of expertise. At the same time
they should be primed and ready to
keep their skills current and fresh, as
well as be striving to collaborate and
foster understanding across disciplines,
functions, andgeographies.
The shale revolution in North
America began around 40 years ago.
Today, thousands of opportunities have
been created that could not have been
imagined then, and even 10 years ago
were just gathering momentum. The
skills and capabilities to compete in the
unconventional market have different
requirements than those needed to
develop complex offshore operations in
remote locations.
There is a tremendous amount of
potential in our industry that is untapped
as we continuously learn what it takes to
be successful and as we face our many
challenges. Agility and collaboration will
be the headlines that create the success
stories of our future.
One of my favorite stories comes
from a former colleague who started his
career as an engineer in the oil and gas
industry. A long commute in a van pool
offered him the opportunity to listen and
learn from someone who worked in a
different area altogetherfinance and
accounting. That ongoing interaction
sparked my colleagues appreciation
and interest outside his normal technical
work, and after several different
assignments, he culminated his career
by serving as a chief financial officer.
The point here is that you just never
know when or how or where you might
have the opportunity to augment your
interest in another discipline, expand
your perspective, or broaden your
knowledge and skills. You cant be
certain how any new expertise might
ultimately impact your career.
The key is to always be open
to new possibilities and ideas, and
takeadvantage of any opportunity
to learn outside your own area of
expertise. In the long term, it will
be advantageous for you personally
and foryour career, and incredibly
powerful for the industry. TWA

Vol. 10 // No. 2 // 2014

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