When I first joined the oil and gas industry, I expected to find cutting-edge technology everywhere. After all, this is an industry that drills miles beneath the Earth’s surface and operates in some of the harshest environments on the planet.
But what I found surprised me: despite all the talk about digital transformation, many parts of our operations still rely on spreadsheets, manual data entry, and legacy systems that belong in another decade.
I work in digital drilling, a field that’s supposed to be at the forefront of innovation. Yet I have seen engineers spend hours cleaning up data from outdated systems before they can even begin analysis. I have seen critical information trapped in silos because our tools do not talk to each other. Once, during a tripping operation, we lost valuable time reconciling two different data versions because the control system couldn’t sync in real time. It wasn’t just inefficient, it was avoidable.
We Are Not Just Competing With Ourselves Anymore
The energy landscape is changing fast. We are not only competing with other oil and gas companies, rather we are competing with tech firms, renewables, and startups that are leaner, faster, and more digitally fluent.
If we want to stay relevant, innovation cannot be a side project. It must be the core of how we work. Manual workflows, legacy SCADA systems, and traditional seismic interpretation methods might have worked in the past, but they cannot keep up with today’s pace. Artificial intelligence, automation, and cloud computing are not buzzwords, they are the new baseline. They give us the ability to make smarter decisions faster, reduce risk, and unlock new efficiencies that were unimaginable a decade ago.
The Real Challenge Is not the Tech, It’s the Culture
What is really holding us back is not technology. It is the mindset.
I have met incredibly talented engineers who hesitate to adopt new tools because they are comfortable with the old way. During a deployment last year, I introduced a digital drilling workflow that automated data visualization. The resistance was not about the software; it was about trust. People wanted to see that it worked before changing their routine. Once they saw the time savings and accuracy, adoption followed naturally.
Change is uncomfortable, but for those of us who grew up with technology, it is second nature. We do not see digital tools as replacements; we see them as extensions of our capabilities.
We need leaders who invest in people, not just platforms, and who prioritize training and create space for experimentation and learning. And we need to make sure younger voices are not just present in the room but are shaping how we evolve.
This Is Not About Replacing People, It Is About Empowering Them
There is a common misconception that digital transformation is about replacing people with machines. It is not. It is about giving people better tools to do higher-value work.
I have seen how drones can eliminate the need for dangerous inspections, allowing teams to focus on analysis instead of exposure. I have seen digital twins help predict failure before it happens, preventing costly downtime. And I have seen how automation in data management frees engineers to focus on problem-solving instead of paperwork.
These are not futuristic ideas, but real, tangible improvements that make our operations smarter, safer, and more sustainable.
Let’s Be the Generation That Leads the Change
We have an opportunity (read: responsibility) to reshape this industry for the better. That means letting go of outdated systems and comfort zones. It means being curious enough to explore new ideas, and bold enough to challenge “the way we have always done it.”
The oil and gas industry has always been about solving tough problems in tough environments. That spirit has not changed, only the tools have.
As a young professional, I am not here to wait for change. I am here to help drive it.
