Articles by Derek Park

What does it mean to be a leader? Could it not be argued that management is just a case of knowing more than everyone else and using staff as a tool to apply and exploit that superior knowledge? History has often admired and applauded the autocratic style of management but have there been that many successful autocrats? A search for a list turned up Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan, Napoleon...Full Article »

EDITOR'S NOTE: With the Business Improvement in Energy and Utilities 2011 event just around the corner, click here to book your place while tickets last Against a background of aging assets and cost reduction, industry is still looking for improvements in safety and productivity. To some this has created a seemingly impossible situation where something has to give, and in some quarters there...Full Article »

The world doesn’t owe us a living. In an increasingly competitive arena we not only have to continually improve our performance but we also have to be sure that we are working on the things that really matter for 100% of our time. To do that we need to be really good at setting priorities. So how good are we at doing the important things all of the time? In previous articles we have seen...Full Article »

A good manager achieves nothing on his own.  He needs the people around him to act if he is to make any difference at all. This dependence on others means that one person could frustrate the best intentions of managers if for any reason they decide not to play their part. Whilst the majority of people happily go about their business, there are those that somehow always seem to thwart the...Full Article »

The west finds itself in a tough race with the increasingly influential economies from the east. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the supply and consumption of energy, particularly oil and gas. Are there things we can do to at least partially redress the balance, particularly in the UK? No one doubts that the global oil supply is getting tighter. This effects the west in several ways. Not...Full Article »

Last weekend the Scottish papers all carried reports on the state of the Edinburgh tram project. Originally intended to link the city centre with the airport and the redevelopment area along the city’s waterfront, the project has degenerated into chaos with progress at a virtual standstill. It is estimated that 85% of the original budget is spent with less than 40% of the works completed....Full Article »

More and more, and not just in industry, we seem to find it difficult to work on the things that really matter. Our priorities seem to be set by others and often we never quite get round to addressing some concerns, especially if these concerns are in the longer term or strategic arena. Whilst there have been great strides in the digital technologies, we still lack some innovations that thirty...Full Article »

Each week, Oil & Gas IQ introduces you to a new member of our rapidly-growing global community. We set out to reveal what makes them tick, and what it is that makes them stand out through their work and life experiences. This week's respondent is our columnist and process management expert, Derek Park .   Q: Who is your hero and why? A: Winston Churchill. He inspired his generation...Full Article »

How Can We Better Include People In Our Decision Making? The most important job of a manager is to make sure that their staff work on the right things. However people often work on the wrong things simply because that is what their managers tell them to do. Ironically staff often know what these ‘right things’ are so the question is , ‘How can managers routinely access this...Full Article »

In the wake of the Gulf of Mexico disaster, is BP and the rest of the industry genuine about wanting change? I firmly believe that the answer is yes, but another more important question remains unanswered. Are they likely to be successful in making that change? I am afraid that the answer to that question is no, not because of a deliberate disregard for integrity, but because of a cultural...Full Article »

In the wake of the Gulf of Mexico disaster, is BP and the rest of the industry genuine about wanting change? I firmly believe that the answer is yes, but another more important question remains unanswered. Are they likely to be successful in making that change? I am afraid that the answer to that question is no, not because of a deliberate disregard for integrity, but because of a cultural...Full Article »