While bridging the gap between field operations and corporate, Patrick enjoys paying it forward.
From roughneck to the corporate office, Patrick Gustafson, Operations Support Principal, says his
experiences at H&P allow him the unique opportunity to be a liaison between drilling operations and the
engineering department.
“I would always joke that I never would work in an office,” says Pat. “But circumstances lead me to this role where I now have the opportunity to be a voice for our rig operations and help integrate their perspectives and needs in larger company decisions.”
Although he did not envision himself working in a corporate setting when he first joined the H&P team in 2005 as a floorhand on Rig 239, he considers himself fortunate to have started his journey with the company under leadership that supported and encouraged him to work his way up to the role he is in today.
“I was able to come up under mentors and senior supervisors who wanted to see all their personnel succeed,” Pat reflects. “I think the fear of failing holds people back, but at H&P I always felt nobody was going to let me fail if I didn’t want to and that pushed me to take the leap. “
In his current role, Pat often reflects on his time out in the field and uses his first-hand experience to serve as a sounding board for the different departments, and ultimately helps the engineering team meet their goal of fostering a positive relationship with field operations through consistent and effective communication.
Aside from his liaison duties, Pat claims that the part he enjoys most about his day-to-day has been the ability to become the kind of mentor and leader that helped him grow in his own career to the teams around him now. He advises new rig employees to leverage every opportunity to connect with and learn from the great mentors that surround them, because keeping an open mind and working hard with a good attitude are the only prerequisites to be successful at H&P.
Patrick sees his story as the perfect example of the impact quality leaders and their guidance can have on a young employee.
“I’m just a roughneck,” he says with a chuckle. “It’s a unique opportunity to be able to work within the engineering department because most other companies wouldn’t have a non-engineer working in this role. I feel very fortunate that H&P gave me this chance and the confidence to take it.”