From Alaska to Industry Leader: Dan Higgs' Journey

In this episode, Dan Higgs shares his journey from Alaska oil field helper to industry leader, discussing safety evolution, industry misconceptions, and the importance of mentorship. Gain insights into industry culture, safety practices, and the future of energy.

 key  topics

Industry safety evolution since 2005
The importance of mentorship in oil and gas
Differences between Alaska and Appalachian oil fields
Impact of industry misconceptions on community perception
The role of field experience in leadership development

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

This is Under Pressure, Compressor Talk by Midwest Compressor. Strategies, systems, and stories from the compressor world. With your host, David Abshire. And now, on to the show.

SPEAKER_01 0:20

Good morning, everyone. This is David Abshire with Under Pressure Podcast. This morning we have the guest. His name is Dan Higgs. Dan, thanks so much for joining us this morning. Thank you for having me. Absolutely. Well, Dan, let's just jump right in, buddy. You started out in Alaska as a slick line helper with basically zero knowledge of the oil field, and now you've worked across, you know, several operations, safety, consulting, production all over the industry. Looking back, what are those early Alaskan years like?

SPEAKER_02 0:50

So they were they were kind of tough to begin with, but also very formative. You know, I I learned a lot. I had to I had to learn quickly. You know, I was new to the industry, had no idea how any of it worked. So I had to learn not only my job, but also kind of how it fit into the greater oil and gas industry. So yeah, it was it was kind of overwhelming for the first you know couple of years getting used to the the culture and everything.

SPEAKER_01 1:16

Definitely coming in and kind of getting used to the culture and the people and the knowledge. It's a whole very unique industry, is what I like to say. And there's a lot of moving pieces that sometimes people are not aware of, but I I completely agree. Now, you had mentioned in your pre-interview that your dad was a truck driver in the oil field, but he even didn't really know much about the industry beyond the fact that companies were hiring and how much of your career was really built by learning everything on the fly.

SPEAKER_02 1:45

Yeah, pretty much all of it was learned on the fly. Um my dad had driven truck for a lot of years for you know different industries, mining and over-the-road trucking. He was in the oil and gas for a few years before I got in. But yeah, he didn't he didn't know much. He said, Yeah, there's this company. I talked to the guys, they're they're hiring, and they have an office in Anchorage. Just go down and put in a application. That's what I did. And uh that was the company was Slumberger, but you know, they're a French company, and the way it's spelled, it looks like Schlumberger. So we both called it Schlumberger because we had no idea. So I didn't even learn how the way the company was pronounced until I went in from my interview. I that's too funny.

SPEAKER_01 2:25

So you've worked at you've worked for Schlumberjay, BP, Holliburton, Southwestern, Gulfport, CNX, and you bounce between Alaska and the Appalachian multiple times. How different are those two worlds culturally and operationally?

SPEAKER_02 2:40

They're they're very different. So Alaska is kind of like its own microcosm. It it has very little influence to and from the rest of the oil and gas that I've that I've dealt with. I think probably because it's so isolated. Uh everything that comes in and out is is very controlled. You can't just drive there. I mean, you can drive on the Dalton Highway, but that's the whole ice road thing. So it's it's it's isolated, but it's also a tight kick, tight-knit community, which is kind of nice. Whereas the Appalachia area, a lot of these companies are from all over the states. They're kind of in and out. Uh some are more permanent, uh, some are a little more transient. So uh outside of the the pad or maybe the the operator you're working for, that sense of community is a a little bit less than Alaska was. And then as far as the operational, it's it's a lot different. There's a, you know, we have infrastructure, you know, in here in lower 48, where if you need something, even if it's coming all the way from Texas, going to West Virginia, you know, you're looking at a day or two if they have availability to get it to you. But in Alaska, you have to plan for weeks in advance, sometimes months. Some of the areas are only accessible in the wintertime on ice roads, and some are only accessible in the summer just due to you know availability and the weather because it's so cold all the time. So yeah, there's a lot of differences between the two. It it took a lot of adapting to sort of get used to working for one or the other.

SPEAKER_01 4:08

Of course, uh working in you know, those two different regions, I'm sure, you know, I can imagine just with Alaska being so remote remote in some of those locations, like you said, you know, it really teaches you to plan, right? To just be able to know that you're gonna have to think that, you know, two weeks from now, I'm gonna need this, you know, one little piece and have it flown in and brought into location, which definitely definitely gives you some really good life planning skills really quickly on the job.

SPEAKER_02 4:37

It does. It does for sure. You definitely make sure all your your measurements and needs are are are fully evaluated before you make that request. Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 4:47

Well, you were inside BP during the period when they started cutting consultants ahead of eventually selling off the Alaska assets. What did the downturn period feel like from the inside?

SPEAKER_02 4:58

It was strange because during that time, BP was still sort of adapting and recoiling from the Deepwater Horizon incident. So there were a lot of internal changes, policy changes, um, all their processes had basically been completely revamped and everybody was still learning. So we were still in the midst of all that, and it started off as as rumblings uh initially. I I think how probably most things do in oil and gas. But it came very quickly once it did happen. So, you know, we worked uh a two-week on, two-week off rotation, and we didn't know until it was our last hitch. Within a few days of us going home, they were basically like, All right, folks, those of you who aren't employees, this will be your last trip. And then the uh the guys coming in learned the day they got there. So it was, I'm sure by design, it was it was pretty Yeah, it was it was it was a bit of a whirlwind.

SPEAKER_01 5:56

Yeah. Completely understand it. And anytime those types of situations go on, I mean it definitely definitely is a shock and awe moment, right? Where everything happens really fast and like you said, definitely intentional by design from their side to make sure that you know it's a shock and awe kind of moment because obviously too, just from liability standpoints and stuff, of course. So a huge part of your career has evolved into HSE leadership and consulting. From your perspective, how much safety expectations changed since you first entered the field back in 2005?

SPEAKER_02 6:30

There have been some big, big changes, and and that's coming from so when I even when I work for Slumberger, you know, most of our work was done for BP, both of which are very, very large companies with very robust safety systems and policies and you know, legal teams. But even back then, a lot of that was a formality. And that's another aspect of Alaska is it's a little bit shielded from the rest of the world, and so they could move a little bit more slowly without pressure, you know, from uh the main entities elsewhere in the world. So yeah, a lot of the the safety programs were definitely a formality. It was still ninety-nine percent productivity, you know, get it done, make sure the paperwork looks all right, but we expect you to get the work done at almost any cost. You know, it wasn't the wild west or anything like that, but it was expectations were that you need to do your job and then the safety stuff we'll figure out after the fact.

SPEAKER_01 7:31

Yeah, absolutely. And I'm I'm right there with you, of course, when when I got into the industry, you know, everything, you know, from how we operated originally, where you know, you didn't have to have a JSA to go to location, and you just needed one guy to sign off, and you know, things just evolved and you know it really changed the industry for lots of it's been for a good thing and a positive, so that way, you know, it prevents anybody from getting hurt, uh, which is the most important thing. And especially that's one of the things too that I definitely remind anybody that's going out to the field, you know, to make sure that you know they've got all the proper gear to go out, uh make sure they got all the proper tools. You know, one thing obviously from a safety perspective can change, you know, uh an outcome really quickly for anybody. So it's it's definitely definitely been a good thing. It's just now, you know, it's now it's kind of been a I would say uh a big ball of momentum with the safety for sure to kind of keep evolving. So I definitely see that in the industry for sure. So you said a lot of smaller contractors struggle because they're trying to go from mom and pop operations into working with major operators, that they have very mature safety systems. Where do you see companies getting overwhelmed the most in the industry now?

SPEAKER_02 8:46

Yeah, that's it's definitely a challenge for them. So the one benefit these larger companies have had with having a more mature safety system is that they have been able to adapt efficiency into these systems. Even the larger companies back, you know, back in the day, you know, they had a struggle where they were trying to find that balance between having the safety systems in place while still getting work done. And they've had a lot of practice in the last 20 years to get that done. The mom and pop, smaller companies, you know, they've been working for lar smaller operators for a long time who have had, I guess, less less pressure, you know, probably from their peers and from regulatory agencies to have these mature systems so they could let a lot of things slide. So when these smaller contractors are coming in and they're getting bombarded with all these required required paperwork, having to have certain policies in place, prove that they're following their own policies and enforcing them, they have a hard time figuring out, well, how do we actually get work done? If we have to learn how to do, you know, pages and pages of paperwork, it looks like it's going to take up our whole shift just to be compliant, and by that time we can't get anything done. So I think that's really their biggest, and just understanding, I think, why a l a lot of these policies are now in place and just just how to how to turn them into more of a natural sort of instinct as opposed to like a major task, and takes a little bit of time.

SPEAKER_01 10:16

Absolutely. I I agree a hundred percent. So one of the best pieces of advice you shared with us was to stay as close as the to the well head as you can. Why has that mindset been so important throughout your career for you?

SPEAKER_02 10:29

I think it gets you into a good headspace. That's a piece of advice that was given to me a long time ago by at the even at the time, an old timer in the field. And and I took I take that literally and figuratively. Even if you're not in the field every day or on location every day, if you're based in an office, I think it's important to have a some sort of interaction with the wells themselves, the the well head, you know, downhole, logistics, things that apply to the well itself. Because there's there are a lot of, I guess, ancillary sort of career choices in the oil and gas that have nothing to do with the production or discovery of oil and gas, which is fine. But it served me well to most of my career has been close to the well head. I don't necessarily think that it uh it adds value to you compared to other things you can do, but it it keeps you more in tune with what's going on since there's uh every year there's a lot of progress with technology and innovation and requirements, and just staying as close as you can, whether you're just keeping your ear to the ground or you actually have hands-on in the field, is I think really important.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

Yeah, absolutely. Uh that's a great analogy. And, you know, I think about like all the noise you deal with on the day-to-day and all the different roles in the industry, and you know, they kind of lose sight sometime of, you know, like you said, just keeping that perspective as well, which is which is a really great analogy. I'm gonna have to steal that explain. Yeah, because uh please as busy as we all get, yeah, on the day-to-day for sure. So you also made a strong point that engineers and office staff need to spend time in the field if they want to want people to trust him. What what happens when the disconnect exists?

SPEAKER_02 12:16

Yeah, there are a lot of consequences, all the way from you know, crews not having the respect, whether it's earned or not, but not having respect for people based in the office, whether they're an engineer or manager, just because you know, the people in the field need to know that somebody has their back and actually knows what they're going through, even if they're not there with them all the time. They have to have perspective. And I think uh BP did a really good job of that, where they had a program when they would hire new engineers, regardless of what they were doing. If they worked in town at the BP Tower for the first year or more of their career, they had to work a rotation. So they would spend two weeks in on the north slope of Alaska rotating through different service lines, acting as a wealth site leader. So they were making decisions on the ground and being responsible for those decisions. So they did that for a while. They got to know the crews, they got to know what the actual job was. So when they would go back into town and write programs to have these crews perform work, whether surface or downhole, they'd actually have some insight as to what they were actually asking for. Before that, we would get programs to have work done, and they would make no sense because the guy or girl writing them didn't really know what they wanted to accomplish.

SPEAKER_01 13:33

And I think that makes a big, big difference. And I agree a hundred percent as well. That's that's one of those things that any time that they can get that real life experience on location and take that knowledge and go back to the office and spend that critical time in the field as much as you can. Because, too, just like we all know in our industry, we're gonna learn from the wiser wisdom, older gentlemans and ladies that have been in the industry for 30 plus years, and they're gonna give you the little tricks and secrets and trades of you know what works and what doesn't work. And I think too, uh, one of the things I like to talk about a lot in our industry is, and myself, of course, included, I like to use the word saffant, self-taught, but you know, it's definitely from the older folks, you know, of course, that have been in the industry, the ones with 25 years, 30 years experience that's been all over uh the the world for that matter, working on these wells and just being able to get their knowledge and pass it on to the folks in the engineering roles and the offices uh to improve processes and make differences and make changes. It's it's so crucial. I I agree a hundred percent. So one min misconception you pushed back on was the idea that people in the oil and gas don't care about the communities they work in. Why does this narrative frustrate you?

SPEAKER_02 14:54

Yeah, that one hits close to home because we're all locals as well. You know, most of us. Sure, there are some employees that, you know, live in Texas or Oklahoma even or Louisiana and come up and work their shift. But a lot of us, myself included, live right here. You know, we see the trucks go by every day. We drive down the highway, we look over, we see a rig. And, you know, we we have a you know, an investment, a personal and financial investment here. So anything that goes wrong, it it reflects on us, but it affects us as well. So yeah, you know, I think a lot of people don't realize that. They they, if they're not in the industry, they only see it, you know, from a third-person perspective. They think that everybody's oh, they're all from out of state. They don't they don't really care, but it's it's just not true. Everybody that I work with, you know, most a lot of my work is done in Pennsylvania right now. And I I live in Ohio, but a lot of the guys are in Pennsylvania. And it and there's really no difference, you know. The only thing separating us is a a river and a couple of borders. It's all it's all our hometown. We all grew up here. So yeah, that's that's really that's really the big thing, is is that we're we're in the same boat as everybody else. The same frustrations that you feel, we do as well, because traffic, yeah, infrastructure, some of these roads, you know, they can suffer from a lot of extra truck traffic, but we also we fix these roads and we put in new roads, and we we do our best to be good neighbors. So, you know, the community outreach has been a big, a big portion of it, sponsoring local things and you know, going out and talking to people, stopping by, speaking to landowners. So we all try to do our part to to change that perception, but it's you know, it's a little tough for for some people.

SPEAKER_01 16:37

There's definitely a a big misconception in the industry that I've seen, you know, especially for people that are not in oil and gas, so they don't know that, you know, hey, we're not we're not dumping bad stuff in the ground, we're not pouring pouring stuff on location, we're not, you know, we're not trying to tear up your roads, we're we're gonna fix it, you know, we're gonna we're gonna build it back better than what it was before. And to create sustainability energy across, you know, the United States and the world for that matter, to where, you know, it's reliable. And I think that's one of the things too, unfortunately, where people get in the wind and solar and they start talking of all that. And I say, well, how's that working out for California? Right, when they have rolling blackouts every summer, and you know, uh they don't want to talk about the oil and gas being a sustainable energy. And, you know, I think it speaks volumes when folks like Chevron move out of California, right? And you know, even Tesla for that matter just moved out of California and moved to Texas. It's like, yeah, well, you know, at the end of the day, uh, it's definitely a great perspective for uh people like me and you that are on that, you know, this side of it going, well, this is you know what we know what we're doing is the right thing, and it's gonna set up, you know, of course, everybody for success, which is the most important thing. One of the one of the other questions was uh you said you said one of the things that you're most proud of isn't a specific project. It's the people you've mentored along the way, including guys who eventually went on to lead districts themselves. When did mentorship become that important to you?

SPEAKER_02 18:06

It took a little while because early on in my career, like I said, I was in survival mode. But along the way, I had a couple really good mentors that didn't just give good advice or you know, teach certain things a certain way, but they actually seemed like they cared and and they wanted they wanted me to succeed. So I took that to heart. And you know, within the first about about two years of my career, I became the mentor and you know, I led crews of my own. And it really quickly turned into me just doing my job to wanting to make sure that these guys succeed as well. Because I I was still fairly fresh. I I knew where I had come from, the struggles that I had had, especially, you know, Alaska is a very unique atmosphere. Not only are you learning your job, you're learning the industry, but you're dealing with the cold. You know, if you have the unfortunate luck of starting in the winter time, you have to learn how to not freeze, you know, while you're learning how to do your job. And then being away from home for two weeks at a time, because you know, we l we stayed, we we slept and you know, ate and lived on the north slope, it's a struggle for a lot of people. It was a struggle for me at first too. So I think I yeah, I I don't know if it was empathy or or or what, but it yeah, like I said, it early on when I became a mentor became important that you know I help out where I can. And seeing those guys be successful was very, very rewarding. And even to this day, some of those guys are uh in higher positions than even I am, you know, companies I used to work for. And that's I I couldn't ask for a better reward than that.

SPEAKER_01 19:44

All the new technologies that are starting to utilize, you know, the natural gas, of course, like the data centers and things like that to where in the past, you know, it was kind of a byproduct and not very many people utilized them. And now, of course, with everything going on, uh, you know, in the the shift and the mindset and to hear about all the, you know, hundreds of billions of dollars that are getting spent to utilize these facilities to run on natural gas, which is great. And so as we see the shift in the industry and of course too, it's been so nice to see the administration back off on all the regulations and stuff like that, as far as you know, some of the manufacturers on the car requirements. And I know uh you know, the president mentioned John Deere was another one, you know, just backing off on emission controls for stationary stuff and different types of equipment. So it's been good to see it. And, you know, it's one of those things too. The more you know reliable we can, you know, produce the oil and gas and become a a a stronger partner, you know, across the world. I think it's just gonna continue to grow the industry. So I definitely appreciate your time today, Dan. One of the things that we like to do, of course, uh just whenever you get a chance, if you can just shoot me your home address, uh, we mail out a package, just kind of a thank you package. Uh it's got some Midwest compressor swag in it, uh, and some stickers and different things like that. Uh just of course, and we always try to do that for any guest that comes on just saying, hey, thank you for you know being able to spend time today with us. So I definitely appreciate your time today, Dan. Uh, thank you so much, and thanks again for coming on. And as soon as we get this published out, we'll we'll let you know, and that way you can share it as well and ship send it to your friends. So definitely appreciate your time today. Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_02 21:28

Yeah, thank you. I had a great time.

SPEAKER_01 21:29

Appreciate you.

SPEAKER_00 21:34

This has been another great episode of Under Pressure. Compressor Talk by Midwest Compressor with your host, David Abshire. Until next time, keep pumping.