Opinion: Thinking differently in the oil and gas sector
The oil and gas industry is in a state of flux. With oil prices at their lowest for decades, there is a need for urgent and decisive change. Although years of high prices allowed companies across the supply chain to operate profitably, they masked some fundamental inefficiencies and broken ways of working.
We at io believe that while today’s prices are not sustainable in the long term, prices will be lower for longer and a $100+ barrel will not be seen again for some time. Therefore, for the industry to flourish, we need transformational change.
Within the industry itself, there are many examples where change is required, from how operators and contractors work together, to the structure and efficiency of supply chain, to attracting talent in an increasingly competitive marketplace and building a trusted and positive dialogue with regulators and the public. Brand, clarity of message and business purpose directly affect these areas and, in turn, can influence business performance. Moving away from the business norms and mantras of the past is difficult, but that’s precisely why organisations in this sector need a clear brand, based on fresh and innovative thinking, communicated clearly to not only press the reset button in the court of public opinion, but also to encourage the oil and gas industry to think again about how it does things.
Just as the general public may have an embedded view of what oil and gas companies do and stand for, the industry itself hasn’t changed how it views itself, it is hard to break out of this mould in order to think differently. Though some companies in the industry are starting to gain cut-through, it remains a buttoned-up world that sees little variation in terms of share of message and only rarely does something eye-catching come along. The tone of messaging can also be quite isolating to the general public as the use of highly technical language and jargon puts people off from learning more about the sector and engaging with it. At a time when low oil prices are directly impacting companies’ profits and public opinion is low, change is needed more than ever to help the UK oil and gas industry’s health for the future.
Transformation can be achieved in many ways, but changing perceptions is a key component. This is therefore the domain of brand and rebranding. True rebranding exercises are not simply ‘changing the logo or the colour palette,’ they touch every part of an organisation and its broad set of stakeholders. Brand is not just having a visual identity, but also a purpose, which is reflected in both its communications approach and its business strategy. In this sense, fundamental transformation starts with a business vision and the brand acts as an outward expression of that purpose.
The industry needs a disruptive way of thinking in order to make a change and move forward to become successful again. With a transformation of this kind, the brand and business model are interdependent. If a brand is seen to be disruptive, this can be inspiring, but hollow if the business has no real purpose and model to back it up. However, if a company is disruptive and yet doesn’t express this externally, then no one will hear about it and the change is limited to a small circle of stakeholders.
As a new start up launching in January 2015, io oil & gas consulting wanted to break from the mould and stand out visually and in terms of language, business culture, types of engagement with stakeholders, clients and potential employees. Most importantly, at its core, io is a new type of consultancy designed to shake-up the offshore sector, transforming how it operates and ensuring projects are completed on-time and on-budget. Indeed our name, io, is a tribute to one of Jupiter’s moons that played a significant role in the development of astronomy in the 17th and 18th centuries. In this same way, we hope that io oil & gas consulting will play a significant role in the transformation of offshore oil and gas development in the 21st century.
Ultimately, rebrands are most successful when accompanied by fundamental business change and that is what the oil and gas industry needs, not just so the industry survives, but thrives – and everyone plays a role in that. A new logo, visual language and narrative signal to industry stakeholders that something has changed and encourages people to consider it from a new perspective. Transformation might start with better capital discipline, managing projects in their entirety – not in silos – or technological innovation. But it must always encompass brand to explain, articulate and show how what we’re doing isn’t just new, but more efficient and effective and ultimately something which drives value to the bottom line. While a good brand does need a standout logo and website, a great brand helps people see things differently and act differently – just what the industry needs.
Sarah Miles is the director of brand and marketing at io oil & gas consulting
