Last week, the Executive Leadership Program: Cultivating High-Performing Teams and Cultures, in partnership with Heidrick & Struggles, held its final session for the year. The quarterly interactive program equips individuals with the tools and skills for future corporate leadership roles.
The overarching theme of the fourth and final session was Executive Communication and Board Roles. Doug Orr and Laura Gironda, Heidrick & Struggles, led discussions centered around the importance of understanding the unwritten rules of the board and executive team and how to build relationships with board members to gain influence. The need to be mindful of the balance between personal and professional relationships was also emphasized, especially with board members who may have different priorities and expectations. The facilitators stressed the importance of understanding the audience and providing clear, structured information and highlighted the need for practice and preparation before presenting it to the board or executive team. In a breakout, groups role played presenting a project to a Board to gain their support and secure future resources.
For the remainder of the session, participants had the opportunity to learn from the experiences of four esteemed energy professionals, including Robert Drummond, Chairman of the Board at Expro & Vice Chairman at Patterson-UTI; Morris R. Clark, Independent Director for Civitas Resources, & Chair of the Audit Committee; Amy Nelson, President of Greenridge Advisors, LLC, Board of Directors at APA Corporation and Leslie Shockley Beyer, Independent Director for Forum Energy Technologies, Nominating, Governance and Sustainability Committee Member, Board of Directors at Patterson-UTI, & Advisory Board Member at Veriten. These leaders generously shared their career and leadership journeys and engaged in insightful Q&A sessions.
The session wrapped with the participants reflecting on accomplishments and learnings from the yearlong program.
“I like to think of myself as a student of leadership, but this program has opened my eyes to different methodologies, tools and philosophies as well,” said one participant. “I thoroughly enjoyed all guest speakers and have been able to expand my network through this program.”
Someone else reflected, “The mentorship piece has been so valuable, connecting with someone who I more than likely would have never run into. Having that opportunity to run ideas by someone to gain their insights was huge for me.”
Participants from each track of the Executive Leadership Program are scheduled to join their counterparts from the other sessions for graduation on January 15, 2025, hosted by the Emerging Executives Committee.
Registration is now open for the 2025 Executive Leadership Programs. For more information about Energy Workforce training programs, contact Vice President Programs & Events Peggy Helfert.
Peggy Helfert, Vice President Programs & Events, writes about the Energy Workforce’s sector-specific best practices and leadership. Click here to subscribe to the Energy Workforce newsletter, which highlights sector-specific issues, best practices, activities and more.
