Devon Energy:feb08
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his year was the second consecutive that Fortune magazine ranked Devon Energy among its 100 Best Companies to Work For, distinguishing the Oklahoma-based independent oil and gas producer as one of the nation’s most desirable employers. “While making the Fortune list is wonderful recognition for the company, it says even more about our employees,” said Devon’s chairman and chief executive officer, Larry Nichols, when the announcement was made at the start of the year. “Our employees’ values and their commitment are what make Devon a great place to work. We have an outstanding company with many wonderful assets, but we believe our people are at the foundation of our strength.” But further to this is the strong correlation between a highquality work environment and business success. According to the Great Place to Work Institute, those companies included on the Fortune list characteristically attract a higher number of qualified job applicants, experience lower turnover rates, and are among Wall Street’s top performers. This is great news for a oil and gas company given the current state of the economy and the pressures being put on industry as they struggle to find skilled and knowledgeable workers who can replace the baby boomers who are now reaching retirement. And for Frank Rudolph, who has been Devon Energy’s SVP of HR since 2007, this remains one of his toughest challenges, as we found out: What do you define as the main challenges in recruiting and retaining talent in the oil and gas industry? Frank Rudolph. If you actually look at it from a macro standpoint, the main challenge that remains despite the current economy is that in seven years from now, between 2016 and 2018, there will be a whole host of people in this industry who will be in the retirement bucket. The economic downturn may have pushed the severity of that out a couple years, but the reality in this industry is that there is a very large segment of the entire workforce that will so all be able to retire all at once. Of course, that means the challenge to grow new talent continues, so we are currently looking at college campuses and making sure that the industry is still meeting all of its technical and talent requirements when people are ready to leave. Just because the economy’s so bad right now, the demographics haven’t changed. There is still going to be a time when a lot of people leave the industry, and we have to be ready for that. Devon’s Bridgeport natural gas processing plant is one of the largest in the country, serving hundreds of gas wells in the rapidly expanding Barnett Shale field in north Texas. www.hrmreport.com
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