Louise Kingham OBE
Chief Executive

Gloom and doom casts a shadow across headlines about the oil and gas industry as economic slowdown and the continuing falls in commodity prices wipes millions off the value of stock markets around the globe. These circumstances are forcing companies to reshape their businesses with the inevitable pain of the impact this has on jobs, productivity, progress in the shorter term and the wider social impact which can be much longer lasting.

Industry cycles are expected – as are the’ ups and downs’ we experience when we’re in them. Clearly it’s important to ride the down times as well as you can but, at the same time, good leadership always has an eye on the future. Making time to think and understand how things will be different going forward and what that means for our organisations and so, being able to reposition to embrace change is essential.

At the same time, worldwide pledges have been made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as part of the COP21 commitment. This takes engagement from the oil and gas sector and so, while managing the downturn, the industry is also examining  the challenges and opportunities these environmental responsibilities present.

With that in mind, listening to the impressive line-up of leaders gearing up to speak at International Petroleum Week in London in less than two weeks’ time to tell us how they are facing the future head on will be time well spent. Bob Dudley FEI from BP, Patrick Pouyanne from Total, Ayman Asfari FREng FEI from Petrofac and Igor Sechin from Rosneft are among the many taking part in presentations and panel debates between 9-11 February. I’d suggest you can’t afford to miss it.