Oil and gas companies depend on their CIOs to show them the way forward as the horizon of technology expands, creating opportunities for increased efficiency and revenues in operational management. 

FREMONT, CA: New technologies possess the potential to help oil and gas companies restructure extensive facilities and drive up efficiency. The opportunities that evolving technological solutions have created for the sector are unmatched. But, the effectiveness of transformations depends on the right adoption strategy, making the role of technology leaders like CIOs extremely critical. CIOs have the expertise and knowledge to determine the technical requirements across upstream, downstream as well as midstream channels.  With the right approach and an IT strategy that aligns well across complex business models, CIOs can empower oil and gas companies to grow technological capabilities and convert legacy processes into highly efficient and loss-proof entities.
 A good IT strategy also strengthens oil and gas companies’ ability to make facilities safer for workers and stay compliant to complicated regulatory norms. The scope of modernizing IT in oil and gas firm is substantial, and this article talks about how CIOs can take an effective lead in planning and implementing best-fit technologies into plants, processes and sales. 

• Planning for a Technological Takeover, Upgrading Talent Pools

CIOs of oil and gas firms must start digitalization journeys with a basic roadmap in hand. Creating this strategy requires extensive use of data and proactive planning with sufficient amount of foresight. A staged approach where technology is customized to deliver value to oil and gas companies is essential. Simultaneously, a workforce upgrade is also necessary. Without the right set of skills, companies cannot implement IT solutions.

• Filtering through Technology Vendors

The market today offers oil and gas companies with multiple options when it comes to technology vendors. The abundance of options often leads to confusion and CIOs have the job of sorting through service providers to choose the most appropriate ones. While the right choice of vendors enables rapid digitalization, the wrong decisions can easily become liabilities. Thus, picking technology vendors is a crucial step in the journey towards digitalization. 

• Adopting IoT and Data Analytics for Upstream, Downstream and Midstream Processes

When it comes to the application of technology to core processes, there is a multitude of possibilities of which CIOs can take advantage. The prospering IoT technology has been found to be very impactful according to the early adopter. With further advancement, smart sensors are expected to find their way into upstream asset and operation management solutions, giving operators enhanced visibility into critical processes. Data analytics technologies complement IoT technology by providing the data-processing prowess with which operators gain real-time insights into working systems. Similarly, IoT and analytics enable better orchestration of midstream processes and apparatus. Ultimately, CIOs can also count on analytics-driven solutions to build better sales and marketing capabilities that are intelligence-driven and accurate. 

• Adding Value through  Advanced Training

IT solutions from AR and VR vendors help CIOs build effective training ecosystems for workers and employees. AR and VR visualizations make training immersive and comprehensive. When oil and gas companies utilize AR and VR technology, training workers becomes easier and faster. The trainees benefit from using virtual machines before having to work on actual machinery.

• Deploying Regulatory Management Solutions  

A regular torrent of environmental regulations has affected oil and gas company operations. Apart from necessitating changes in machinery and production process, the regulations affect profitability as well. CIOs can equip their companies with IT solutions that deliver regulatory planning and management services. With technology-backed ways of auditing, reporting and assessing, companies can improve compliance performance even with changing norms. 

Robust IT infrastructure can support and drive the growth and expansion of oil and gas companies. With powerful technologies, CIOs enable operators to achieve new levels of optimization and develop comprehensive capabilities that extend the boundaries of revenue, safety and innovations.