Members in Transition: Career Planning, Job Search, Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Abstract

The Members in Transition (MiT) initiative was established by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Gulf Coast Section (GCS) in response to the downturn in the industry. Career transition can be defined both as a category for members who are waiting to land a job, and those who are employed, but looking to transfer their skills to other sectors of the oil and gas industry. The function of the MiT initiative is to disseminate best practices in career planning, job search, entrepreneurship and innovation. MiT events allow those in transition to feel the support of their colleagues in the Society and create opportunities for reciprocity where one can help one's colleagues. MiT activities provide learning opportunities to enable participants to rethink fundamental strategies and to find new ways to survive the downturn conditions.

The SPE-GCS has prepared a process guide to help other SPE sections to set up their own local MiT initiatives. The SPE-GCS MiT initiative includes:

A monthly seminar series

Access to free computer software licenses and training

Ideas Launch Pad, a relationship with the Houston Technology Center to encourage entrepreneurship

Pay-it-Forward Networking Tours, Training and Panels

Job Search Work Team, small groups who meet weekly to work on their job searches together, a concept based on Orville Pierson's books on job search.

A career fair heldregularly

Starting in early 2016, the first five methods listed above have been deployed with strong participation. The sixth method, the career fair, was initiated in 2017. While a MiT survey was used to collect demographics and feedback, the more useful measure of the success of this initiative will be how many SPE members return to an employed state in the energy industry after spending time in transition. The downturn has caused several members to consider entrepreneurship and innovative business schemes as a replacement for fulltime employment. Disruptions cause people to rethink their standard processes, or way of doing things, and look for ways to do them more effectively and efficiently. This focus on entrepreneurship and innovation will continue to provide value to members, even after the downturn ends.

The SPE-GCS collaborates with other technical and professional societies to provide resources for members in transition. SPE-GCS partners with the Houston Technology Center (HTC), the largest technology business incubator and accelerator in Texas, advancing the commercialization of emerging technology companies in the greater Houston area. The MiT initiative launched by the GCS has been complementary to the support that SPEI provides globally via the MiT toolkit and Journal of Petroleum Technology (JPT) articles profiling perspectives of SPE technical directors and leaders.