Freedom within a Structure

Being the best at what you do often entails becoming a leader and thus being responsible for the work of many other people. Management style should be grounded in the philosophy of empowerment. An effective leader empowers others, and this requires a certain balance. You must first establish a strong structure and subsequently allow freedom within that structure. This will enable you to form an organization that can act quickly and decisively within a framework of economic discipline. We have a well-defined culture in terms of our value system, risk profile , and economics and growth profile. Within that framework, we allow our regions to be very entrepreneurial. This provides the atmosphere conducive to innovationnew insights and ideas that contribute to the existing system. It also allows us to act in a quick but disciplined manner. In terms of technical expertise, we are organized in a very decentralized manner. We have four regional offices with the full component of technical expertise from geoscientists to engineers to landmen. They have worked in their particular regions for most of their careers and have the local expertise and knowledge that give us a competitive edge. We centralize administrative functions to relieve the regions of this burden and allow them to do what they do bestfind and acquire oil and gas reserves at a reasonable cost. Thus, while you should form and oversee a business structure that encompasses all aspects of your company, enabling your employees to concentrate on their respective specializations will ensure that each unit of the business is functioning at its fullest capacity.