The PESA Executive Address Series at TopGolf began with an inspiring address delivered by Gary Halverson, Sr. Vice President & President – Drilling & Production Systems of Cameron International and current PESA Chairman. Mr. Halverson who has held posts in Asia and the Middle East, as well as a leadership role in Central America stressed the importance of gaining international experience, which he said was a career accelerator for him personally. “It is no longer about selling products and services to a customer; it’s about listening, understanding, and bringing solutions to the table,” states Halverson, who prioritizes creativity and innovation for future global energy leaders.
Halverson spent three decades building Cameron’s global business platform which conducts more than two thirds of their business outside the U.S. at 300 global offices. Their forward thinking approach to seek out new business opportunities wherever they might be has helped them play ahead of the curve and create massive opportunities of expansion into frontier markets.
“We are a global industry delivering energy to the most remote parts of the world. You should believe in what you do and be proud to be a part of the energy industry,” stated Halverson. The world is experiencing a global shift with dramatic political, economic and industrial changes where technical innovation becomes a crucial factor for success. Halverson’s advice to the energy work force veterans and newcomers alike is to use technology to differentiate yourself, as a company and individually. Doing a self-assessment, he suggests, will help find solutions to problems, and will contribute to your own success. Your responsibility is to solve problems.
The main components for a rewarding career in energy outlined by Mr. Halverson were:
Enjoy your work: Don’t get hung up on titles and use opportunities to expand globally to learn more about the entire spectrum of the energy landscape.
Network and find mentors: Make good use of PESA and other organizations to network and find smart people to work with and use as mentors.
Learn to listen: Build good teams with diversity of ideas; avoid micromanagement and by listening to customers, employees and policy makers, stay in tune with the ever changing global energy space.
Never Sacrifice Operational Integrity: Part of being successful in your career is maintaining your core values, adhering to a commitment to integrity in all areas including environmental issues.
Be proud to be in the Energy industry: You can be extremely proud of being a part of the energy industry, where we make important positive impacts around the world.
Halverson, who was elected PESA Chairman in 2015, strongly supported getting involved in this growing organization. “PESA continues to evolve and you can benefit by finding a way to contribute by joining a committee or attending seminars and events,” stated Halverson. “PESA is becoming more relevant in critical areas such as policy work and continues to offer valuable education and internship programs – we are very excited about where PESA is going in the future.”
The TopGolf event presented by PESA on July 23 was sponsored by Cameron. Those attending felt that the event was a valuable way to meet informally with energy executives from many companies and levels within the organization. The afternoon of golf got into full swing as PESA members exchanged their laptops for their favorite golf clubs and at day’s end, winners were announced.
Best Individual Score overall: Greg Gilbert
Winning Team: Josh Lowrey, Greg Gilbert, Trey Smith & Kendall Carew
