Business Development

[Ajay]

Curious to know if anyone on here is in oil and gas business development?

I'm inquiring more about the companies that contract out services (i.e. construction, project design) as opposed to the large oil and gas producers. I would still be curious to know who's in business development in the large oil and gas companies and what credentials/experience you had to get into those roles?

[DUBBED]

Let me be very clear that I am NOT IN BD. However, I've had lots of conversations with very high people who have either been in BD or who work very closely with that group.

At a very high level here is what I've learned. Engineers and geologists run show in the Oil & Gas industry, no surprise. The amount of technical knowledge and understanding needed to understand the industry is usually aquired through those paths. However, at the company I last worked for the BD VP was a B.Comm and LLB, but he has been in the industry for years and has been working very closely with engineers for a long period of time.

Basically the above two disicplines will have an advantage because they have been trained in and educated on the technical aspects of the industry, and are much more capable of the duties. But that's not to say that accountants or lawyers can't do the work either, it's just a matter of learning the lingo and learning how to put up with a bunch of engineers.

[Ajay]

Thanks for the information. A friend of mine works for a major oil and gas company and he told me the same thing. He said at his company it's all engineers that are in BD.

I thought it may be different in a company that provides services for oil and gas producers but I could be wrong. My sister has a friend who knows someone that works in BD for a oil and gas service provider and all he has is a BComm in Marketing from UofL.

[Pacman]

I've got a couple of buddies in BD for O&G service companies.

Both have BComm degrees, and started off in sales. After 5 years of developing relationships with their customers, they moved into the BD roles.

[Ajay]

Was their sales experience in oil and gas or a different industry?

[Pacman]

oil and gas sales for the companies they are now doing BD for.


Originally posted by Ajay
Was their sales experience in oil and gas or a different industry?

[adam c]

are you strictly looking for O&G or are you flexible?