Highlighting unconventional thinking, new technologies, diversity and the future for the oil and gas industry, 150 young and mid career engineering professionals gathered at the SPE Emerging Engineers Symposium.
The symposium, held at Marathon Oil Tower on October 17, was a daylong event hosted by the SPE Gulf Coast Young Professionals group. The keynote speakers and panels were made up of high caliber leaders in the industry including Lee Tillman, the CEO of Marathon, directors at major oil and gas companies and Bradley Olson, a Wall Street Journal reporter.
Brian Elliott, Technical Sales Director – US, participated in the diversity and inclusions panel. Recognizing the specialized trainings and programs Tenaris offers, Elliott focused on the Technical Sales Global Trainee Program, a six-month specialized training in Argentina, unique to his group, offering a combination of in-classroom, on-the-job and on-a-customer-rig experience.
“With that global footprint comes a lot of cultures and those cultures add value,” Elliott said to the audience of engineers. “From how we engage with one another and communicate to the individual and collective know how of the group, to how we collaborate and make decisions to provide solutions for our customers.”
Elliott continued with personal anecdotes about his time in the Army, citing his leadership of a platoon consisting of 5 ethnicities, 5 religious backgrounds, 4 native languages, and an age spectrum of almost 30 years. He closed with remarks advising young engineers to embrace cultures and travel, expanding their networks outside of just their day-to-day routines.
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