Director, Controls and Automation

The Director, Controls & Automation will lead product development and technical teams to execute the Company's strategic vision in delivering best-in-class drilling and power systems automation on our fleet of drilling rigs. The position will manage teams in the Controls & Automation department responsible for developing, testing, deploying, supporting, enhancing, and marketing a comprehensive suite of automation applications. In addition, the Director, Controls & Automation will partner with various internal and external stakeholders, including engineering, operations, technical services, marketing, and customer groups.

The ideal candidate will have experience in upstream operations to effectively prioritize and direct development scopes of work, while also managing highly technical teams including control system engineers and data scientists. This role requires a collaborative, goal-oriented and solution-based approach to successfully manage a wide range of assigned critical projects while meeting time sensitive objectives. The successful candidate will set high standards of performance for themselves, their direct reports, their projects, and maintain a professional demeanor in written and verbal communications.

This position will work under the direction of the Sr. Vice President of Technology & Engineering.

Detailed Description:

• Lead a product development team responsible for:
  • Prioritizing and defining development scopes of work.
  • Creating technical documentation including functional specifications, test and commissioning procedures, and training materials.
  • Assisting with quality assurance to ensure applications are ready to be deployed to field.
  • Coordinating beta test programs, including defining and measuring acceptance criteria.
  • Collecting Voice of Customer feedback to drive continuous product improvement.
  • Collaborating with marketing and customers to successfully launch and support products.
  • Participating in industry events including conferences and committee meetings; authoring technical papers and patents.
• Lead a technical development and quality assurance team responsible for:
  • Converting functional specifications into design specifications.
  • Developing new solutions and supporting existing applications on a variety of complex control systems; development scopes of work include PLC's, HMI's, VFD's, MCC's, edge computing, third party system integration, networking and communications.
  • Ensuring all development scopes of work undergo thorough testing before field deployment, which may include the design and development of simulation systems.
  • Managing a state-of-the art laboratory environment to support research, development and testing activities.
  • Developing and ensuring compliance to department standards.
• Lead a sustaining support team responsible for:
  • Acting as the last line-of-defense in troubleshooting and resolving highly technical issues on drilling rigs; conduct root cause analysis and ensure results are disseminated to stakeholders.
  • Developing and facilitating technical training programs to train regional technicians to support controls and automation systems; developing and facilitating operational training to ensure drillers or other rig personnel can effectively utilize automation applications.
  • Managing control system upgrade projects including hardware retrofits and expansion of tool function and data streaming capabilities; ensure all changes are managed through the Management of Change process and are adequately documented with drawings and manual updates

Job Requirements:

• Ability to lead a team, manage multiple tasks, and work on multiple projects simultaneously to meet challenging deadlines
• Good communication skills with the ability to establish and maintain effective internal and external working relationships
• Excellent interpersonal and time management skills
• Advanced computer skills with Microsoft Office Suite including PowerPoint, Excel and Word
• Must be a self-starter able to take initiative, make decisions and drive for results. Must demonstrate a high level of professional integrity and demeanor
• Ability to regularly travel as needed to visit work sites and support business units; may occasionally require extended travel to remote locations and/or overnight stay(s) outside normal office area
• Ability to make rapid business critical decisions with available information
• Ability to motivate individuals and teams by cascading the company vision and purpose and drive alignment through clear and consistent communications across regions and functional groups

Demonstrated ability in the following leadership competencies:

• Builds and Maintains Effective Relationship
• Develops Self and Others
• Builds Effective Teams
• Courageous Leadership
• Managing Vision and Purpose
• Business Acumen
• Drive for Results
• Customer focus
• Decision Quality

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering
• 7+ years of experience in upstream oil & gas operations
• 5+ years of leading a multiple disciplinary team
• Direct experience developing new controls or software applications from conception to implementation

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's Degree in Engineering or Business
• Experience leading Controls and Automation Engineers

Travel:

• Up to 25%

Additional Details:

This position requires the person to be able to work in a time sensitive, high visible role and regularly travel as needed to support business units and to visit work sites. It may also require extended travel to remote locations and/or overnight stay(s) during variable hours. Variable work hours include hours worked on the weekend, on holidays, and hours to travel within and outside of the assigned region. The Director must work with an emphasis on planning, multitasking, and prioritization to maximize efficiency of the team. Must be able to work closely with others and manage customer interaction in a professional manner. Ability to safely navigate work sites with occasional walking, climbing, standing, stepping, working at heights, etc., during normal operating conditions (day/night, outdoor hot/cold weather) and while utilizing designated personal protective equipment (PPE).