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Success stories
Koil Energy Solutions Embracing a new culture centred around innovation and energy transition
Charles Njuguna, President & CEO
The primary concern was clear. How could the company overcome its challenges, transform under new leadership, and establish status as an important player in a rapidly evolving industry? The solution
How is Koil Energy Solutions thriving? Confronted with a series of challenges, Koil Energy has emerged thanks to a major strategic rethink and sweeping cultural change. In pivoting proactively towards energy transition technologies, the firm has succeeded in instilling a mindset shift across its employee base that is now focused on curious thinking, collaboration and innovation. The challenge Design, engineering, manufacturing, installation and aftermarket services provider Koil Energy (formerly Deep Down, Inc.) is an enterprise primarily focused on delivering subsea energy products and services. Back in 2019, the firm faced turbulence and change in the aftermath of its founder retiring. With Charles Njuguna stepping into the role of CEO, he became tasked with steering the company in a new, futureproofed direction – challenging aspirations as Covid-19 hit just a few months later. Faced with negative oil prices, increasingly intense energy transition demands and the volatility of the pandemic period, Koil was plunged into uncertainty. The bread and butter of its operations was centred around hydraulics – a specialism that the industry was speaking about leaving behind as organisations worldwide actively began moving away from oil and gas.
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EIC Survive and Thrive
If Koil Energy was to transform effectively in an industry that was transitioning, significant change would be required. The organisation recognised it needed to retain the best parts of itself from the past, while repositioning for the future. This strategic shift culminated in a rebrand in March 2022, the firm moving away from its former name as it pursued a new strategy pathway aimed at energising the future of the subsea energy sector while preserving a standard of creative solutions developed over the years. “Koil Energy may be a new name, but our DNA remains the same… As our customers expand their horizons beyond traditional oil and gas, this move is a charge into a new era, with a steadfast commitment to what we pride ourselves on, nimbly finding unique ways to enhance offshore energy operations,” said Njuguna, commenting on the rebrand. The focus of the strategic repositioning was two-pronged. First, the company sought to continue to have an intentional focus, whilst widening its reach in relation to innovative industry technologies. Expanding its reach beyond oil and gas required an internal cultural change. Second, to both influence and obtain buy-in to this cultural change, Koil Energy created cross-functional working groups to act as charters to drive cultural changes in various areas, including operational excellence, growth and sales, products and innovation, ESG and sustainability, brand and market perception, and talent development and retention.
2023