A few months ago, I received the SPE A Peer Apart Honoree Award and stepped into my role as an executive editor for the SPE Journal (SPEJ), overseeing manuscripts in formation evaluation and data analytics. Reflecting on this milestone, I realized that my journey in academic publishing started over a decade ago with a single, unglamorous review request.
For young professionals (YPs) and graduate students in the energy and geoscience sectors, scientific publishing can often feel like a black box. Many view peer review as an obligation rather than an opportunity. Today, I want to pull back the curtain on my 10+ year editorial path across SPE, the Society of Petrophysicists and Well Log Analysts (SPWLA), and the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG), and share how technical community service can profoundly accelerate your own professional growth, deep technical domain expertise, and cross-disciplinary breadth.
The Blueprint: A 10-Year Editorial Evolution
My journey wasn't built overnight. It evolved through four distinct phases, each requiring a different level of commitment, perspective, and a growing dedication to the technical community.
The Foundation: Earning Trust as a Contributing Author and Technical Reviewer (2012–2015)
Like many others, I started at the grassroots level as a technical reviewer and session chair. However, I quickly learned that to be a great evaluator of research, you must also be an active producer of it. During this foundational timeframe, I focused heavily on being a contributing author, publishing more than 20 conference and journal papers. Writing and reviewing are two sides of the same coin: Every paper you publish sharpens your empathy for authors, while every paper you review forces you to sharpen your critical thinking, stay updated on the latest research, and practice delivering constructive feedback.
It was also during this foundational phase that I had my first taste of editorial leadership. In early 2015, I served as a guest editor for a special section in the SEG/American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) Interpretation journal, focusing on the geologic, geophysical, and petrophysical interpretation of core data and well logs. Coordinating this multidisciplinary section and articulating how fine-scale subsurface data integrates with seismic and engineering workflows was an eye-opening experience. It made me realize the immense value of managing scientific consensus and directly catalyzed my transition into long-term editorial roles.
The Deep Dive: The Associate Editor Era (2015–2025)
Building on that guest editor experience, over the next decade, I had the privilege of serving as an associate editor (AE) for journals published by across three premier professonal societies:
- SEG Interpretation (7 years)
- SPWLA Petrophysics (7 years)
- SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering (REE) (6+ years)
As an AE, responsibility shifts from just reading papers to managing the consensus of the scientific community. You sit at the crossroads of authors and reviewers, balancing technical rigor with editorial fairness. Serving across three different societies allowed me to see the subsurface from multiple lenses—geophysics, petrophysics, and engineering.
It was during this decade that my technical contributions and editorial commitments began to intersect. I was deeply honored to receive the 2018 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Formation Evaluation Award and the SPWLA Meritorious Service and Technical Award in 2019 and 2021, which validated the bridge I was trying to build between operational excellence and academic rigor.
The rewards of publishing come quietly but meaningfully after years of consistent contribution. From the editorial side, being recognized with multiple Outstanding Associate Editor Service Awards (SPE REE 2020–2021 and 2024–2025) and ultimately being named an A Peer Apart Honoree in 2025—SPE's highest honor for dedicated editorial service—reaffirmed the impact of this work.
The Pivot to Breadth: Embracing the AI Frontier (2020–Present)
As the industry began its massive digital transformation, I realized that traditional subsurface workflows needed to merge with data science. I leaned into this cross-disciplinary space by chairing data-driven analytics groups and eventually becoming a founding editorial board member for Artificial Intelligence in Geosciences, an international open-access journal, in 2020.
Bridging physics-based petrophysics with data analytics allowed me to bring emerging AI paradigms into traditional workflows. This intersectional work led to the 2022 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Data Science and Engineering Analytics Award and later, the 2025 SPWLA Distinguished Technical Achievement Award. Embracing the subsurface and digital space showed me that the most breakthrough innovations happen at the intersections of disciplines.
Strategic Leadership: Executive Editor and Global Outreach (2025–Present)
Today, as an executive editor for SPEJ, my focus is no longer just on individual papers, but on the strategic direction of the journal's data analytics and formation evaluation portfolio. Parallel to this, serving as an SPWLA Global Distinguished Speaker for 2025 and leading the SPEJ Ambassador Program has shifted my focus toward global outreach—mentoring the next generation of reviewers, authors, and practitioners worldwide.
Key Takeaways for YPs
Looking back, building an editorial track record gave me an unparalleled macro-view of where our industry is heading. If you are a young engineer or scientist looking to build your profile, here is my advice.
- Depth and consistency take time. Do not rush the process. Spending 6–7 years as an AE for flagship journals wasn't a chore; it was a masterclass in domain expertise.
- Cultivate technical breadth early. Don’t isolate yourself in a single technical silo. Look for where your core discipline intersects with emerging technologies (AI, data science, energy transition). It expands your perspective and makes your insights unique.
- Adopt a "service mindset." Approach peer review not as a resume-builder, but as a service to the community. Ironically, the more you give to the community with a service mindset, the more your visibility and professional reputation grow naturally.
- Be proactive. Don’t wait for an editorial board invitation to land in your inbox. Raise your hand. Volunteer to review for local chapters, write high-quality discussions on published papers, or apply to join technical committees. Show up, deliver on time, and the community will notice.
Final Thoughts
To the YPs reading this: Our industry’s future belongs to those who can master deep technical fundamentals while agilely navigating new technological frontiers. Serving as an editor has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my career, bridging my roots at UT Austin with real-world industrial innovations.
I highly encourage you to take that first step. Review that paper. Join that technical committee. Volunteer. Your future self—and our engineering community—will thank you for it.
