Are the emerging machines our friend or foe? The debut of new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things IoT) and a host of others seem to be drowning us as we drink from a technological fire hose. Additionally, driverless vehicles, the Gig Economy et al. are conspiring to eliminate truck drivers and
“The Eagle has landed,” and fifty years ago mankind had accomplished the heretofore seemingly impossible. Two men on the moon became a game changer and not in just the way most believe. Yes, technology advancement owes much to these early space pioneers traceable to the 1950s; realistically a long process going back much further. Aerospace
When discussing the likelihood of DNA in crude oil, one source comments, “So the DNA they are talking about is like the DNA, where they’re looking at the live bacteria in the crude oil, which would be descendants of the bacteria that was around when the oil first began its degradation from organic material.” Time
Our recent article, “The Digital Oilfield Culture: Transformation Value for the Organizational Ecosystem” (pp.24-26) takes a somewhat different change management approach. Why not brand your digital oilfield culture? Most consumers are familiar with the so-called ‘Brand Name.’ These are names so ubiquitous that in some cases that we take them for granted. Soft drinks, beer,
As the officers, seamen and passengers of the Titanic came to understand, it is not what you can see that gets you but what is below the visible surface. Visualizing the unseen remains a continuing challenge. The current president of the United States is by many accounts the most unlikely political victor. He is not
The April 13-14, 2019 edition of the Wall Street Journal featured an opinion piece by Holman W. Jenkins, Jr., Russiagate and the Media’s News Denial. The author makes the point, “Judgement is teachable. Long ago, in relation to the Enron debacle, I pointed to the work of Harvard’s Max Bazerman and Northwestern’s David Messick, who
This month a group of astronomers announced they had captured the first image of a black hole, some 55 million light years from earth. A novel use of high-performance computing enabled this imaging and seems to hold promise for future commercial applications. Moreover, there is a great deal of discussion and hope that astronauts will
We have long argued that people will change if they understand the new idea/technology value proposition—what’s in it for me? For some, this question is more difficult to answer than others. Moreover, we are all stuck! This age of digitalization may pass a few ‘off the grid’ hermits by, but for the rest of us
Winston Churchill is credited with saying, “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” The late Prime Minister nailed it; once again! Our journey through life, including our career is a marathon not a sprint. While we celebrate success, often at happy hour or a party, we
The United States officially entered World War II on December 8, 1941. The war in the Pacific formally ended on September 2, 1945. A recent documentary on one of the history channels chronicled the path the United States took from a nation with an underdeveloped military to global dominance over this period. What struck this
In a recent Houston Chronicle article, its author puts forth the premise that while oil and gas companies should do well in the stock market this year, don’t expect the energy services sector to fare as well. As those who are either in the sector or track it (stock analysts) know all to well that
Are we on the verge of another California gold rush, boom market or depression? No one knows. What is certain; risk mitigation must be central to any business model. This year may be especially challenging for the oil industry. Recently, conventional wisdom is downgrading average crude oil prices for 2019. Reasons include a plentiful supply
It is hard to believe we are now 19 years into the century. Seems like only yesterday we were worried whether the lights would stay on at Y2K. Each year many of us promise to do better at a list of things, some personal and some professional. Some days or weeks later, some or all
Originally published in 2013. On January 1st at 0348 hours a young engineer employed by a service company is trying to address a problem she has encountered with a compressor on a drilling rig in the Deepwater Gulf of Mexico. She graduated from college three years ago and went to work for a large energy
The managerial model, Command and Control (C&C) dates back to the dawn of humanity when tribal chieftains dictated the behavior of the group. It survives to this day in many forms. Typically, one thinks of military operations as the current manifestation of C&C in the western world. According to Wikipedia, by one definition found in
Over 15 years ago, organizations such as Enron, Worldcom, Tysons, and others failed after massive managerial maleficence and even criminality. Enron’s auditor, Arthur Andersen folded as well. The result of this carnage was the imprisonment of many, the death (apparent heart attack) of the disgraced former CEO of Enron, suicides, massive shareholder value destruction and
Prologue In the author’s August 2004 edition of the then, Executive Briefing Newsletter (early online delivery) we addressed the impact on the firm of managerial misbehavior. This article was one of a list of challenges put forth to that generation of management. Sadly, recent events have compelled us all to revisit this issue, although for
One of the hot business buzzwords of 2017 is “Operational Excellence.” It has been the subject for many pundits, including this one. In October and November we published a two part series, Assuring Operational Excellence from Contractors and Their Subcontractors through BTOES Insights. Each part included a link to additional information. The October edition featured
