Really really good geologists, engineers…Talent is the real competitive advantage.
26 replies (most recent on top)
@1c8 su-ks but I get it. I bet all our good people are getting contacted
@e5 if we are thinking of the same person, he 100% was, but then he realized his loyalty and performance weren’t rewarded. I know him and he was genuinely sad to leave and it could have been easily avoided.
@zb Buying proven assets is a business model and can be a successful one. Not all companies have the resources to discover new energy resources. The cost to find and develop assets is very expensive and Chevron is a "cash cow" in the petroleum business. The investors want consistent dividends and having the financial resources to purchase smaller companies is a business strategy. This strategy is like an "investment bank", purchase the assets and reap consistent dividends.
"excellent talent": What does that mean? My manager told me that everyone in a given job title is an interchangeable cog in the system. There is no longer exceed expectation nor do better. I thought we were just to find a seat somewhere and drink coffee.
@w1 you clearly did not work with those that left if you don’t think several of them were hi-pots. Bring them up and you’ll realize very quick. You’re ignorant or jealous, classic CVX and that’s why we’re in trouble and not close to beating Exxon. We need to be honest with ourselves as a technical community. Not only did they leave, there is no chance we are replacing some of them with who is left at CVX, both in skill and sheer knowledge, people don’t get trained that way or mentored by industry SMEs like they were anymore. I worked with several of them and was their peer and I know that for sure. Thats why they were poached and paid.
People also leave for a whole variety of reasons that we don’t know about. Just be happy for them if they are happy about it!
@w1 Bumme not certainly not for a 28.3% raise ;)
Best wishes though!
@za The alternative is to buy into discoveries made by others - the Crown Jewels of CVX - Tengiz, Gorgon, Stabroek, Kern River, et al.
When we lose a battle, responsibility ultimately sits with leadership—not with the soldiers. When an exploration project fails, we should be honest about accountability: is it the SMEs who provided input, or the leaders who made the final calls?
Many of the colleagues who recently left for Exxon had 10+ years of experience. They did not have decision authority over past exploration outcomes, but they are strong geologists—exactly the kind of talent that would create significant future value if given the right opportunities.
Were their technical recommendations genuinely heard and respected? Did repeated exploration failures still leave them with pride and job satisfaction?Were they offered a credible, promising career path here?
From what I’ve heard and observed, the answer has too often been no.
I understand some senior leaders may be on this board. I hope we take employee retention—especially of high-performing technical talent—seriously. If we want to succeed in exploration, asset management, and downstream sales, we need our best people to stay, feel valued, and be empowered to do their best work.
Really really good geologists at Chevron? I guess that’s why we haven’t found a drop of oil in over a decade.
Good riddance.
@w1 at least six as far as I know. They may not the high-pot by your standard - reaching to psg 26 or country manager with ~10 years service, but they are really really good SMEs. They knew their stuff, worked very hard and got stuck in psg 24 or their current psg.
@v0 I can count on one hand the number of people who left Chevron for Exxon in the last year. I’m not sure you were really a high-pot…
I was a high pot at Chevron and left recently for a position at Exxon. I can tell you one thing, we do not talk about Chevron in every meeting. It's much of the same in the day to day but is better paying and Exxon actually expects accountability.
@q1 if you are bottom 10-15% at Chevron, you must really be a slacker. It is not difficult at all to stand out in this company
I'm always roughly the lower 10-15% performers and I'm okay with that because I'm not trying to climb thr ladder. However it makes me nervous and living in fear not knowing if they go the way of Exxon and cut the bottom 5-10% each year.. how long until I'm in the bottom and at risk. That's not a healthy workplace
And swimming with toxic pondscum at Chevron.
At Exxon you are at risk of getting let go if you don’t perform.
At Chevron you are at risk of getting let go because even when you perform, others don’t.
Exxon is cut throat. Jump ship at your own risk. Swimming with sharks there.
@a3 are we hiring former Exxon staff in India?
@a3 in India, maybe, where people change companies every 6 months for a few dollars more
Chevron used to have 1 thing going for it: culture. Now that it’s gone, it’s pretty clear what the better company is. Mike Wirth has eroded the culture so much that there’s no more incentive for people to stay at Chevron, particularly when Exxon pays better.
All true technical talent will go to Exxon, where things are cut throat and there’s much less work life balance and “culture”.
Chevron has been floundering for years. Ever since Mike Wirth took over the company, it has gone down hill. Everybody who is halfway decent is looking for a new job.
Yeah that one shocked me too. I thought he was solid CVX.
Exxon pays for talent, Chevron doesn’t.
Exxon is not perfect but has a clear and articulated plan to achieve their vision, Chevron doesn’t.
Chevron leadership sees the only lever to adjust the company is cost cutting and sending as many jobs as possible to India.
Exxon tried that (as did others) and recognized that India is good for certain jobs and not for deep technical work needed to find and produce oil, Chevron is going into what others did 3-5 years ago.
Chevron is trying to become Exxon, why wouldn’t employees go?
“ We've stolen a lot of talent from Exxon this year”
What a weird statement. We just had a year long round of layoffs with a hiring freeze. We didnt steal talent from anyone.
Chevron has made a choice to remove many positions and to drastically change the culture, so employees have to consider Exxon for employment. Exxon is lucky yo get such high class talent.
We've stolen a lot of talent from Exxon this year