In oilfield chemicals no-one really sells anything anymore. I’ve been doing business in this sector for well over 20 years, and for the customer, more often than not, it’s never been about sales. In upstream oil and gas, the “sale” is so long, complex, and consultative, it more correct to call it a partnership. It’s an exploration of client needs, followed by a custom solution, followed by a real time monitoring of performance, followed by verification/validation of said performance, and then back to the beginning. It’s not linear, just a cycle. Suppliers have no pure sales teams as such; instead they have customer engaging people that work closely with prospects and clients. This is not getting cute with job titles, it is how business is done. Companies delivering a joined-up approach bringing technology and service to meet their customer’s needs. Leveraging their services/products, insight, people, and ideas in a mutually beneficial relationship. They are not “selling” them a chemical and sitting back, they are full integrated into their customer’s operations. Good business is about being there for your customers every day. In oilfield chemicals, capturing a new account is an incredibly hard and long process. Having good people delivering good results almost always ensures client retention, as, without a significant compelling reason, no customer will take on the cost/risk of change. Contract renewals are the lifeblood of this business. Taking care of your customer is deadly serious business thus “partnerships” not “selling” is the required approach especially when the industry is facing ever-bigger challenges. The Big Shift Change and recent shedding of experienced work force has hit very hard creating a huge knowledge and competency gap. Therefore, customers will now only partner with suppliers who offer Insight, Ideas, Innovation and most critically… Impact. Ed Catmull (founder of Pixar Animation Studios) writes, "When faced with a challenge, get smarter" and he explains that so much of getting smarter is hiring and putting together the best team possible. He goes on to say: "Ideas come from people. Therefore, people are more important than ideas... If you give a good idea to a mediocre team, they will screw it up. If you give a mediocre idea to a brilliant team, they will either fix it or throw it away and come up with something better." There are only 4 key elements critical to the DNA of a successful chemical/service company: • The team. Right people = right result • Focused organisation with clear strategy • The language and culture of client service and safe operations • Innovation and execution, delivering demonstrable performance from your products and services The team is the most important because everything else flows from that. Get that right and the business will take care of itself. JJ (with Esa Mikkola)