Founded just a year ago, the SPE Integrated Reservoir Management Technical Section (IRMTS) is driven by a clear mission: to promote holistic, integrated approaches that maximize asset value by connecting disciplines, skills, and perspectives. Recognizing a persistent industry challenge—attracting and retaining young professionals, as reflected in SPE membership trends—IRMTS launched the Youth Wing. The initiative ensures emerging talent plays a meaningful role in shaping the future of integrated reservoir management. It provides young professionals with opportunities to apply next-generation skills, build confidence, and develop leadership capabilities, preparing them to guide the industry forward.
Reverse Mentoring: Bridging Generations Through Collaboration
Today’s business environment thrives on dynamic, multidisciplinary collaboration, it’s no longer a top-down process but inclusive and reciprocal. The Youth Wing’s reverse mentoring initiative embodies this shift. By inviting young professionals to share their perspectives, workflows, and communication styles, we create a space where experience meets innovation. Senior members gain fresh insights into how the next generation tackles challenges, while emerging talent builds confidence and influence in shaping technical conversations.
Youth-Led Tech Programs: Cultivating Leadership Through Innovation
The Youth Wing is more than a platform, it's a launchpad for leadership. Through youth-led technical programs, early-career professionals take the reins in designing, organizing, and delivering content that reflects emerging trends and challenges in reservoir management. These programs empower young engineers to lead discussions, host webinars, and even collaborate across disciplines, building not just technical acumen but confidence, visibility, and strategic thinking.
SPE Student Connect: Building Bridges Across Generations
SPE Student Connect is the Youth Wing’s way of ensuring that the journey from student chapter to professional section is seamless and inspiring. By creating structured opportunities for interaction—such as joint events, mentorship circles, and collaborative projects—we’re helping students stay engaged beyond graduation. This continuity strengthens the technical section’s pipeline of talent and fosters a sense of belonging that lasts well into their careers.
Recognizing Exceptional Talent: Giving Young Voices the Stage
One of the most powerful forms of recognition is visibility. Through the Youth Wing, we’re committed to identifying and elevating emerging talent by offering speaking opportunities at technical forums, webinars, and SPE events. These platforms allow young professionals to share their work, insights, and ideas with a global audience, building their confidence and expanding their professional networks while inspiring others to step forward.
Mentorship: A Two-Way Street of Growth
At the heart of the Youth Wing is the belief that mentorship should be dynamic and inclusive. Our mentors are experienced professionals from the IRMTS community—multidisciplinary engineers, project leaders, and technical advisors—passionate about guiding the next generation. Mentees can be students, early-career professionals, or anyone eager to grow within the integrated reservoir management space—from the geoscientist who imagines the reservoir beneath the surface, to the production engineer responsible for delivering hydrocarbons safely to storage. Participation requires membership in the IRM Technical Section—but the best part? It’s completely free. The Youth Wing serves as a welcoming gateway into the broader SPE ecosystem, fostering the cross-pollination of ideas and experiences.
Advice to Other Technical Sections: Start Small, Think Big
Launching a youth-focused initiative doesn’t need a big budget or complex framework—it begins with listening. At IRMTS, leadership offered strategic guidance while letting young professionals take the lead, empowering us to shape the initiative from the ground up. The section itself was built to include everyone, encouraging members to involve youth in building the future. By inviting young professionals into planning, recognizing their contributions, and staying adaptable, technical sections can harness fresh energy and perspectives. Given space to lead, youth don’t just participate; they transform the movement.
Looking Ahead: A Movement, Not Just a Program
The SPE IRMTS Youth Wing is more than a new initiative—it’s a movement toward deeper inclusion, shared leadership, and future-focused collaboration. By creating space for young professionals to lead, mentor, and be mentored, we’re not just preparing them for the future—we’re inviting them to shape it. As integrated reservoir management continues to evolve, so must our approaches to talent, knowledge-sharing, and community. The Youth Wing stands as a clear commitment to that evolution.
