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Researcher Elaine Cullen doesn’t mince words when she
talks about talent and the energy sector. Her message: the industry is
rapidly approaching a critical crossroads.
Within the next five to seven years, more than half of the energy
industry’s most experienced employees, from pipeline technicians to
geoscientists, will reach retirement age.
“Mining, oil and gas extraction, construction, and others are all
facing a dramatic change in the makeup of the workforce as the
aging traditionals and the huge baby boomer generations retire,” says
Cullen, who recently wrote a white paper on the approaching worker
exodus at the request of workforce housing provider, Target Logistics.
Cullen, president of Prima Consulting Service in Chattaroy,
Washington, is not the first to note the shift on the horizon. The
energy industry refers to this reality as “The Great Crew Change.”
And mass retirements are only part of the equation.
Ideally, the energy industry would rely on experienced “midcareer”
employees to fill vacating retirees’ roles. But the industry’s last down
cycle, between the 1980s and 2000s, led large volumes of young
people to choose other career paths during that era. As a result,
energy companies must now look largely to much younger, less
knowledgeable people to meet their workforce needs. And they must
recruit these young people during yet another industry downturn.
These complex challenges likely will impact energy companies
worldwide. The 2014 Mercer Global Oil and Gas Talent Outlook
and Workforce Practices Survey predicted that the global oil and gas
industry would add more than 1.1 million professional and technical
jobs during the next 10 years. Less than half of the world’s largest oil
and gas producing countries said they had adequate talent to meet
the demand.
Finding – and Training – Talent From Within
The situation warrants attention, but it is far from hopeless. There are
manageable steps companies can take now to fill vacancies and create a
Preserving Knowledge;
Preparing for the Future
M A R K E T R E P O R T
The Oil and Gas Industry and
“The Great Crew Change
”