Schlumberger Business Consulting

Schlumberger Business Consulting (SBC) is a global management consultancy specializing in the E&P industry. With 150 consultants operating from 10 offices around the world, SBC serves its clients on a wide spectrum of management issues, ranging from strategy and organization to operational efficiency.

History

SBC appeared very recently on the management consulting scene as it was established in 2004. The direct sponsor of this initiative was Schlumberger Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Gould.
The underlying idea was to combine Schlumberger's technical expertise and knoweldge of the oil&gas key players with pure management consulting skills.
The target was to create a management consultancy solely focused on E&P that would then have a unique competitive advantage over the traditionnal management consultancies.
Over 5 years they witnessed a rapid growth, and since 2008 they appear to be the market leaders for upstream management consulting.

Organization

Regions and Practices

The SBC organization is structured around clients and communities of practice. Geographies are structured as Areas (North & South America, Europe- Middle East and Africa, Asia), each managed by a Director. An interesting feat is that their teams are not structured by country: consultants are asked to serve clients on a global basis, to pursue opportunities within the area but also lend assistance to teams in other areas.

Structure

Their teams are structured around the standard pivotal jobs of the consulting industry: consultants, managers, principals, vice presidents and directors.

Within each of these categories, members can be further distinguished as more “junior” or more “senior”, according to their experience, accomplishments and responsibilities

Consultants, (whatever their level of experience), are part of a consulting team, under the direct supervision of a Project Manager. They participate to the delivery of consulting projects, bringing analytical skills, familiarity with organizational and process issues, and experience of the Oil & Gas industry and of related technologies.

Managers are experienced consultant who are trusted to manage consulting project teams, under the supervision of a Vice President. They will also be asked to participate in business development and intellectual contribution initiatives. A significant part of their mission is to train /coach their team members.

Vice Presidents are the equivalent of “Partners” in other typical consultancies. They will report to the Director of the Area. Their mission is to develop client activity, supervise the teams that deliver the services, and to manage client interactions.

Directors manage a geographic area.

Offices

Paris Houston London Singapore Mexico Djakarta Kuala Lumpur Beijing Abu Dhabi New Dehli Rio de Janeiro

See Also

1. Petroleum Industry
2. Management consulting
3. McKinsey
4. Boston Consulting Group
5. Booz & Company
6. Bain & Company

External Links

1. Official website
2. Schlumberger
2. International Energy Agency
3. Oil and Gas Journal
4. Upstream Online