Energy Workforce President Tim Tarpley participated on a panel as part of the Greater Houston Partnership’s third annual “The Future of Global Energy” conference.
The webinar focused on “Building a Workforce for the Transition,” moderated by Rebecca Ensley, PwC. Other panelists included Jane Stricker, Houston Energy Transition Initiative; Mary Beth Gracy, Accenture; Jim Griffin, LyondellBasell Center for Petrochemical, Energy, & Technology at San Jacinto College; and Dr. Ramanan Krishnamoorti, University of Houston.
The panel focused on how the Houston workforce positions itself as it navigates the increased demands for energy at a lower-carbon intensity. The energy transition taking place in Houston is particularly focused on its people, as the city is home to one of the largest concentration of oil and gas workers and thousands of jobs that support the industry. Getting new talent into the pipeline, keeping workers engaged and training people in new energies such as hydrogen are all workforce development areas that energy companies in Houston prioritize.
In the discussion, Tarpley talked about developing the energy workforce of tomorrow and how trade associations are a partner in promoting energy workers and the industry.
“Our mission as a trade association is to tell the compelling story of our companies, with their skilled workers being our greatest asset,” Tarpley said. “We actively engage with state and federal governments to advocate for policies that acknowledge and harness the power of this invaluable workforce. Our goal is to ensure that our Member Companies have access to emerging opportunities in new energies and government initiatives, as their expertise makes them uniquely qualified.”
The Houston Chronicle reported on the panel, adding that Tarpley dispelled the message of the future of energy turning young talent off as they see a global shift to cleaner energy sources.
“There is a tremendous opportunity,” he said. “But we need to be better as an energy industry at telling that story.” He stressed that it is important young people understand the realities of global energy demands and how critical the oil and gas industry will be in powering the future for decades to come.
Maria Suarez-Simmons, Senior Director Energy Policy, writes about industry-specific policies for the Energy Workforce & Technology Council. Click here to subscribe to the Energy Workforce newsletter, which highlights sector-specific issues, best practices, activities and more.
