Performance Excellence: Aligning cultures between on and offshore operations teams to deliver improved performance

When Maersk Qatar identified poor working relationships between offshore and on-shore teams, Concentric Consulting delivered an engagement strategy that would deliver Performance Excellence.

Brief

Creating sustainable collaborative work environments

Maersk’s upstream oil & gas operations in Qatar are managed by the combined efforts from offshore production teams and on-shore management teams supported by central technical, commercial and safety functions. Faced with increasing operational complexity and poor relationships between on and off shore teams recognised as an obstacle to maintaining and improving performance.

Concentric Consulting was tasked with aligning the teams in order to improve performance and sustain operational efficiencies. This would be achieved by:

• Developing leadership collaboration
• Promoting consistency in collaborative working environments
• Creating a ‘One Team’ behaviour and monitoring effectiveness
• Engaging executive leadership in owning the collaboration plan and delivering against priorities

Delivery

A bespoke program for sustainable improvement

Concentric’s innovative Performance Excellence program is tailored to the needs of individual businesses and their teams. For Maersk, the program followed two key phases: Observations & Reporting and Change Implementation & Monitoring.

Phase 1: Observations & Reporting

Concentric designed and distributed questionnaires to all stakeholders and managers, both on-shore and offshore. These gathered important data on relationships, processes and meeting roles and responsibilities, specifically what was working well, and what needed improvement.

This was followed by site observations to see the teams working together in both their on and off shore environments. This included the design of an agreed set of observational focus points, ensuring consistency of feedback and analysis, covering

• Leadership and management
• Teamwork and collaboration
• Problem solving and decision making
• Situational awareness

This observational process illuminated several common themes, from a perceived lack of closure on follow-up tasks on the Action Tracker to no consistent ownership of the current technical review meeting. There was also a general feeling of apathy towards the process that needed to be addressed.

Phase 2: Change Implementation & Monitoring

To increase collaboration, Concentric identified the need to create two on-shore technical hubs bringing together the required specialists to manage the process and operate as one team.

To communicate this change, a clear mission statement was agreed, posted, and used to generate awareness and align the team. Concentric also designed and implemented a structured process for collaborative environments based on three principals: People, Processes and Technology. This was accompanied by guidance on establishing open discussion, active listening, a focus on outcomes, and taking advantage of joint capability.

To maintain engagement and buy-in from key offshore personnel, this was reinforced by visits to the hubs at each rotation. A communication pack was produced to support on and offshore Town Halls, Team Leader Briefing Sessions, Focal Point Briefing Sessions, and Key Stakeholder Sessions.

Outcomes

A unified team for the best possible performance

Concentric worked with Maersk to implement key value-adding processes, defining the competencies required to make decisions, and implementing a collaborative working environment.

The Performance Excellence program enabled:

• Increased data and knowledge sharing for decision making
• A shift from reactive to proactive thinking
• Improved integration across functions and objectives

Crucially, the new practices and tools embedded in the teams will provide a foundation for collaboration in the coming years. Over the next three years, Maersk’s vision and strategy for collaboration will cover:

• Leveraging experience from others and the wider industry
• Developing processes and executing a change management plan before implementation
• Linking the approach to future projects and corporate activities across Maersk
• Developing and applying predefined, multi-functional workflows
• Assessing and implementing processes and technology that add value

The work Concentric delivered resulted in the Maersk on and off shore teams adopting the philosophy and methodology of Performance Excellence as business as usual.