SPE YP FORUM

Career Development and Success in the oil

and Gas Industry SPE Section 61, Lagos Nigeria Held on the 26th of October, 2013 at Four Points by Sheraton Hotels, Oniru Estate, Lagos, Nigeria Report prepared by Eloka Anidi & Teresa Ukoba (YP Chairpersons) 27/10/2013

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Table of Contents

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3

Organization ................................................................................................................................................. 3

Planning and Budgeting ................................................................................................................................ 3

Event Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 4

Attendance .................................................................................................................................................... 4

Pictures ......................................................................................................................................................... 5

Appreciation .................................................................................................................................................. 5

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Introduction The SPE YP Forum of Lagos Section 61 is an innovation in the quality and content of events for

young professional and was packaged based on the need to improve participation in SPE YP

activities. This program, which is planned to be held quarterly, would target the current needs of

young professionals within the Lagos Section in line with world trends. This is also clearly aligned

with the section’s key YP objectives which include promoting technical excellence, ensuring

effective communication and networking amongst YPs, engaging with students and encouraging

the study of science in high schools. The YP forum involves presentations by specially

selected guest speakers on a topic of interest, closely followed by a question and answer

session and then a period of refreshment where food and drinks are served while

networking takes place. It is a semi-formal event and would usually last for 3 hours and

hold in the evening during a non-weekday. Attendance would be predominantly reserved

for young members of the section and a selected number of student members drawn from

our affiliate universities.

Organization In planning this forum, three focus areas were identified and they include the quality of

selected topic of discussion, reputation of nominated speakers and event location. The

chosen topic “Career development and success in the oil and gas industry” is one which is

paramount in the minds of every young professional in the industry today. It is a concern

which transcends age, race, religion, job role and company. It somewhat determines job

satisfaction, employee remuneration and commitment, as well as happiness; hence the

choice. In terms of selection of speakers, we decided to choose persons who are at a high

level of authority in their respective companies and be generally considered as successful.

Also, they had to be staff of oil producing companies and no two speakers are to represent

a single company. After wide consultations and research, we came up with a list of five

individuals. They include Cletus Egbuzie (General Manager – Operations Technical

subsurface, ExxonMobil Nigeria), Joseph Ofili (Engineering Manager, Seplat Petroleum),

Seyi Adeleye (Chief Technical Officer, Oando Energy Resources), Horace Awi (General

Manager – Drilling, Addax Petroleum) and Uzoma Echegiri (General Manager –

Commercial, South Atlantic Petroleum). The venue – Four Points by Sheraton – was chosen

based of its accessibility, reputation for quality of service and facilities available.

Planning and Budgeting

Planning for this event was carried out by the YP leadership in conjunction with

subcommittee members and Lagos section 61 Board members. The event was sponsored

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by SPE Lagos Section 61 and involved an approximate cost of eight hundred and twenty

thousand naira only (N820, 000) covering cost for the venue and refreshment. Invitations

were sent out for this event based on a mailing list obtained from the SPE membership

database for YP members in this section; a selection of student members were also invited

based on recommendation from the respective student chapter president. To track interest

and participation, interested participants were required to register prior to this event by

sending their name, and company affiliation to a dedicated email address. A spreadsheet

was also developed to manage registration and record actual participation; it would also

be used to manage future events and to track individual contributions.

Event Summary The event which started at about 3:10 PM and lasted for about 3 hours and 20 minutes, started

with an opening remark by the Section Chairperson, Mrs. Oghenero Ozobeme. This was

followed by a welcome address by the YP Chairperson, Eloka Anidi, after which he delivered a

presentation on the sections YP activities in the past year. The crux of the day’s activity

started with an introduction of the speakers to the high table, during which a short profile of

each speaker was read. Each of the speakers then took turns to deliver their individual insight

to the topic of discussion and proffered varied advice for YPs. This lasted for about 90 minutes

and discussions centered on building the right attitude to career and to work. Most of the

speakers agree that developing technical competence, communication and networking skills as

well as hardwork and focus are keys to attaining career success. Horace Awi of Addax noted

that pushing the limit in one’s ability is a habit that helps you acquire skills you wouldn’t

ordinarily have, and get you where you wouldn’t ordinarily be. Cletus Egbuzie of ExxonMobil

discussed a list of items required for career success including analytical capability, interpersonal

effectiveness, communication skills, honesty, integrity, and adaptability, amongst other things.

Uzoma Echegiri advised YPs to embrace mentorship within and outside their organization as a

means to increased learning, personal growth and effectiveness. A 20-minutes Q&A session

allowed attendees to ask questions that bordered on becoming more effective and successful,

as well as receive guidance on concerns and issues they had. The forum ended with a vote of

thanks delivered by the YP Chairperson.

Attendance The event was attended by over 140 young professionals from various oil and gas producing

and service companies, as well as students and recent graduates from affiliate Universities. A

list of attendees is included in an attached spreadsheet.

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Pictures After the statement of appreciation, a group picture of board members with the distinguished

speakers was taken, and subsequently refreshments were served in buffet style.

Appreciation On behalf of the YP leadership of Lagos Section 61, we express our sincere gratitude to all our

distinguished speakers who took time out of their busy schedule and family time to grace the

event. We also appreciate everyone who supported this program, especially the Chairperson

and board members of Section 61, and all those who attended.

Pic 1: Seating L-R: Cletus Egbuzie (General Manager - OTSS, ExxonMobil Nigeria), Joseph Ofili (Engineering Manager, Seplat Petroleum), Seye Adeleye (Chief Technical Officer, Oando Energy Resources), Horace Awi (General Manager - Drilling, Addax Petroleum), and Uzoma Echegiri (General Manager - Commercial, South Atlantic Petroleum)

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Pic 2: Cross-section of attendees during the event

Pic 3: Back view of the Sun Hall at Four Points by Sheraton, venue of the event

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Pic 4: Eloka Anidi – YP Chair, delivering his closing remarks and vote of thanks

Pic 5: Seyi Adeleye: CTO – Oando Energy Resources, giving out gifts during the event