After starting in October and November 2019…
The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic spread around the world in the first few months of 2020. While many citizens were critical of government responses being slow in some countries, overall, reactions were substantial and unprecedented.
Drastic actions were taken to protect people, but then our attention started to move to the global economy, as quarantines, lockdowns, travel restrictions took effect. Just like a tsunami following an earthquake, will the economic aftershocks be worse than the virus?
Some industries can’t simply stop, where employees get categorised as essential workers. Necessities include food, shelter and energy. The process of rearing, sowing, nurturing and reaping food supplies takes months or years. Building homes take longer. The process of building a nuclear power station, wind farm, hydroelectric turbine or oil well can take years. After being constructed, regular maintenance, repairs, and eventual decommissioning prevent catastrophic economic loss and environmental damage.
The process of planning, safekeeping and operating energy production facilities is a long term process, running into decades. What happens when no-one can fly internationally? When workers are quarantined, self-isolating, or perhaps even sick?
Every conscientious individual and company has been forced to do the best that they can, with the reality presented.
In a previous article, we explained how Relentless Pursuit of Perfection Ltd. was adapting to the market conditions. Their flagship services all involved in-person group workshops and international travel. These are two of the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic. At the same time, keeping current energy production safe and securing future supplies are utterly essential.
We can now report some findings after many test video conferences, and the first few commercial ones.
Have you organised or attended a virtual (online) DWOP delivered using Zoom, MS Teams, or similar?
Did it deliver on its objectives? Or did it instead fall flat?
After extensive testing of various communication and collaboration tools, rp² have now delivered several truly interactive virtual xWOPS for clients in Norway and the UK. (x has stood for Drilling, Logging, Supplying and Abandonment so far!).
Relentless Pursuit of Perfection is confident that these virtual xWOPS provide enough value that they can stand alone as viable long-term options. Once we go back to the ‘new normal’ we expect that each E&P company will decide which is the most suitable for their needs, in-person or virtual? The criteria will depend on each use case. As technology continues to improve, so will the advantages in comparison to the traditional workshops.
As we move forward, and international travel opens back up, while traditional workshops will continue, virtual conferences will be seen as more equal.
The feedback from all attendees after the first events has been unanimously positive. The ‘Beyond Video Conferencing’ Delivery Model is a viable, long-term and cost-effective option that will serve clients needs way beyond COVID-19.
A recent webinar was conducted for people in the UK and US timezones, and notes were shared. Here are a few of the key takeaways from the webinar:
- ‘Key Success Factors’ and ‘Pitfalls’ are openly discussed
- Effective facilitation and sufficient resources need to be applied
- While Zoom is the most versatile VC platform, all other platforms can be used
- It’s not necessary to download any of the tools onto a company laptop
- Security is as good, if not better than a F2F session
If you want to learn about best practices to ensure a virtual workshop is a truly collaborative event that adds value to the Well Delivery process, then click on the link below to attend a short webinar on the subject. You’ll also learn how to avoid the pitfalls too!
The Day: Thursday 11th June 2020
The Time: 11.00 hrs WIB (Indonesia) = 12 midday KL / Singapore / Australia CST
The waiting room will open 15 minutes beforehand
Duration: 45 minutes with an additional 30 minutes for those with Q&A
Platform: Zoom (which can be run off the cloud if needs be)
The Place (Click here to register)
Hosts: Dave Taylor and Warren Penner
Note: We have previously run a webinar on 2nd June (3 pm UK time) and can run more if the demand is there.
Xoom is good but it doesnt work for all fields.