Celebrating 85 years of the IADC legacy through stories

The following entries are part of IADC’s 85th anniversary campaign, “Many Stories, One Voice,” which aims to showcase the real human stories behind the drilling industry. We invite you to join us in this effort by sharing a personal story that highlights the passion, innovation and purpose powering our industry and the lives of everyone it touches. Click here to submit your story. 

Thad’s Story

This story is from Thad Dunham, IADC Vice President, Government & Industry Affairs – Onshore

My first day with IADC was on April Fool’s Day in 2019. Three days prior, my soon-to-be boss Bob Warren invited me to the Hyatt downtown Houston on a Saturday morning. I received little instruction besides, “Be there at 7:30, wear a suit.”

Like any good future employee, I suited up and met Bob downtown. I had no idea what I was doing or what the meeting was about. We rode up the elevator with a few people I didn’t know, but I could sense they were important. I eventually noticed they were Congressmen from different states. Then, in walked US Senator Ted Cruz, who sat down across the table from us.

I had spent the past seven years working on drilling rigs in West Texas and had met very few, if any, elected officials in my life. As this was unfolding, I thought to myself, “What is happening right now?” The senator leaned back and began preaching to us about the great state of Texas, among other things. Afterwards, a shuttle took all of us to a power plant outside of Houston, where we learned how carbon was being captured at the plant and then injected into nearby wells to stimulate production. I thought, “Is this what Bob does? This is incredible.”

Two days later, I officially started my job. My office sits next to IADC’s breakroom, and I sometimes overhear conversations. One time I heard Bob sit down with a couple of coworkers at lunchtime. He asked them, “Can we pray?” Bob led them in a prayer, asked for blessings on their families, and proceeded with lunch as usual. At that moment, I realized this was not your average place of employment, and Bob was not your average boss. He continued to pray before each of the hundreds of meals I’ve had with him over the past six years. He never mentioned himself in the prayers, always the other people at the table. I’ve been very fortunate to work for some great people in my career, but working for Bob has been the highlight. I’ve learned countless things from him about the industry, but most importantly I’ve learned what it takes to be a servant leader. 

From his time in Russia and Iran, to fighting blowouts in Kuwait, to being “born on a drilling rig,” there was never a lack of things to talk about. Bob’s career and mine are both examples of how this industry will take you to incredible places you’ve never dreamed of – if you will just say YES and go for it.

Bob Warren embodies everything I respect most about this industry — integrity, humility and an unwavering commitment to serving others. He’s shown me that true leadership isn’t about the title on your business card, but about how you treat the person sitting across the table from you. I’m honored to serve IADC’s members, and the lessons I’ve learned from working with Bob are ones I’ll carry with me for a lifetime. DC

Shawn’s Story

This story is from Shawn Vigeant, member of the IADC Offshore Advisory Panel and IADC Houston Chapter Board of Directors, and Head of Business Development, Customer Engagement & Industry Relations at Transocean

My career began in the energy industry in 1993. While working as a Marine Project Geophysicist on seismic vessels, I was fascinated by the offshore rigs in sight and desperately wanted to go onboard. Without websites available then, I combed the Houston Chronicle’s Sunday jobs section during my days off.

I saw an opportunity at Diamond Offshore for a Rig Management/Ops Development Program. They were looking for degreed engineers to transition throughout all positions offshore and onshore over five to seven years. It sounded perfect for me. I was fortunate enough to be hired and started in 1994 with Diamond, first as a roustabout on a jackup.

Immediately I was exposed to IADC, mostly through my early mentor Morrison (Moe) Plaisance. Moe was a stalwart at IADC and always pushed young engineers into IADC’s opportunities. I had supervisors (Denis Graham, John Vecchio and others) who encouraged me to submit abstracts for conferences to showcase our company, but also to network, grow and learn personally. I was blessed by great folks who pushed me in the right directions. After several years offshore, eventually moving to semisubmersibles and drillships, I worked my way into the engineering, projects and well control departments.

I gave my first presentation — “Deepwater Driven Advancements in Well Control Equipment and Technology”— at the 1998 IADC/SPE Deepwater Drilling Conference in Dallas. It was terrifying and thrilling all at once. I was hooked. I spoke with our company’s marketing folks about opportunities to continue at conferences and networking events. Shortly thereafter I moved to marketing as a technical marketing manager, then contracts manager, then sales and business development director.

In 2005 I moved to Pride International and stayed active with IADC globally with another passionate mentor, Bob Warren, who now serves as IADC’s SVP Government & Industry Affairs. I’ve served on various technical drilling committees, conference program and advisory roles, and eventually the Contracts Committee. In 2011 Pride was acquired by ENSCO, and my involvement with IADC continued growing.

In 2017 I moved to Transocean, where I’m fortunate to manage our industry relations efforts (IADC/NOIA/API/EEF), as well as business development and customer engagement. I currently serve on the global IADC Offshore Advisory Panel and the IADC Houston Chapter Board of Directors.

Recent and satisfying developments in my career include mentoring students and young professionals through the IADC Houston Chapter Scholarship program. We raise $100K+ annually for scholarships to college and trade students. One of my mentees, Richard Montes from the University of Houston (my MBA alma mater), just got hired at ConocoPhillips. Another mentee, Reagan Pate, is working offshore for Transocean this summer and is looking to join our industry as a drilling SME upon graduation. Those are the moments for which I am most thankful — passing it on and replacing ourselves, keeping this great association of IADC and our energy industry going for many decades to come.

I thoroughly enjoy my career-long 30+ year relationship with IADC and am honored to share my story in celebration of IADC’s 85th anniversary! DC