kerry.king

Hope everyone has had a great holiday season. I found out the day after Christmas I'm being laid off at the end of January. I don't want to get to specific on who I work for in an open forum. I'm currently on my last hitch overseas on an offshore drilling rig. In May I'll have been with my company for 10 years as a Cementer. I work for a rather large oilfield service company. Have worked land and offshore. International and domestic. I'd appreciate any help or guidance or advice on any job leads. I'm more than happy to send out my cv to anyone that can help. I haven't had to look for a job in almost 10 years, so I'm pretty stressed about it. Being away from the US and dealinig with a 15 hour time difference doesn't help.
Thanks for any help or advice in advance,
Kerry

HMX-1

Rigzone dot com.

Sign up there as it's in your field and they'll send you a daily list of jobs via mail.

Good luck in your search bud




-Kris

kerry.king

Hey Kris, thanks for the reply. I have my resume posted on rigzone, oilcareers,fircroft, and autooiland gas.com.
Intimidates me just applying online along with everyone else. When I applied to my company 10 years ago, it was a paper application at my local yard. I got a phone call before I even got home. Interviewed the next day and got a handshake and a new career in the oilfield. I don't know how these HR people can even sort through thousands of online resumes without putting a face or personality to a name. Awhile back I applied around in the GOM as I was working there and wanted to get out of cementing and try to go subsea. I got the standard reply saying that someone of my level of experience and time as a supervisor wouldn't work out starting as a trainee. Even though a subsea 1 trainee position started about 40k a year more than what I made at the time. That kind of clued me in that HR uses a template and probably misses out on a lot of experienced people just because they have a long time in another area of the energy sector.
Ah, sorry for the rant. Not directed at you. I'm really stressed.

Shorts

Hey man, a tool that helped me revamp my long outdated resume for my recent job hunt was a book called "Knock 'Em Dead - Resumes" by Martin Yates. He has a whole series, (i have several books) but learning how to sell yourself and job hunt prep is what he does. Follow his advice and you will put yourself ahead.

You mentioned online resume data bases and the difficulty of being selected for the sheer volume of apps. Yates specifically addresses that. It's about formatting and key words. Every job title is a target and every app submitted has to be tweaked specifically for that target. Long gone are the days of one formatted resume.

I really encourage you to check it out.

sherod

Kerry, I can't help with your area of experience, but also, don't be afraid to try something else. Your management skills may take you places you haven't even thought of.

Good Luck!

kerry.king

Thanks shorts, I'll see if I can download that book from amazon to my kindle and read it!
Sherod, thanks for the encouragement!! Trying to keep my chin up out here

RoadDiesel

A person with your experience, energy, and work ethic, (want to work) has a bright future. However, M-a-n-y H.R. personal who sort through the résumés, I believe have really been "Dumbed" down for common sense, logic, and can be the most arrogant, stupid, emotional baggage carrying people..who I often say..how do these people get to be an HR personal! take a deep breath, relax, trust in God & You will be fine!!

kerry.king

Thanks Road Diesel. I tend to think the same way with HR people as you. In my 10 years with my company I've gotten jammed up a couple times with HR over stupid time wasting,( my time), conflicts with a couple co workers. HR always makes it worse. And ya know what? I'm still here and those guys that raised hell and went to HR didn't last. Couldn't handle the long hours and physical labor.
I also wonder during the oil booms how HR people justify hiring some of the clowns we get. I've had guys put on my crew that were in the later stages of life and unfortunately not physically fit to perform the job. You could tell before we even left th shop, yet they managed to BS the suit dummy in HR and get hired. Also had lots of young people that couldn't hang in either. Didn't want to work, wanted to watch everyone else work. They were the guys that would hand you an 8lb hammer instead of stepping up and swinging it themselves.
So far I've got a couple nibbles. We'll see. I'll keep everyone posted.
And thanks all for the encouragement and advice. I appreciate it

kerry.king

Well, the customer out here on the rig told my managers that if they lay me off, they can come out here and take the cement unit off too. So i'm gainfully employed for the next 2 years on this project. I'm sure after this project is over I'll be getting cut loose. My boss isn't very happy ( my salary is most likely cutting into his bonus or Mercedes payment)
Glad to know the customer has my back and is happy with my work.
Thanks all for the advice and well wishes!!!

Shorts

Good to hear the update. You got some time back. Between now and then you can prepare yourself and have an orderly transition.

sherod

Kerry- Glad to hear your short term is covered. Good news!

NE frmhnd

I know a guy looking for a farmhand, if you'd have been willing to move east about a half a day.

kerry.king

Farmhand, that's funny you mention that. My wife's family hails from the Scottsbluff/Alliance area. Her Mom told her we should drag up and move there and I could try to get on with the Railroad. Her step dad drives a caol train, been doing it twenty some years. She also has an Uncle that runs a cattle sale barn in Sheridan Wyoming. He told me I could goto work for him too.
I'm safe, for the next 2-3 years anyhow. Hopefully this oilfield slump will be over by then and I can transfer within my company to another district, hopefully back in the States.
I'd like to get out of the oilfield, but it's really all I know anymore. I used to drive truck and run heavy equipment, but wasn't making hardly any money, hence why we decided to goto work in the patch. I get home in a couple weeks for my month off. The wife and I are going to sit down and have a long serious talk to try to come up with some options and maybe a better plan for the future.

NE frmhnd

We're about 3-3 1/2 hours from Scottsbluff. Depending on how you drive. The boss has had 2 people lined up who fell through. We're running out of time, another month or two and we'll be ***** to the wall trying to do what we need 3 or 4 people for, with 2 people.

kerry.king

Hmm, mayne on my months off I could run up there and work a couple weeks to make some extra cash. I don't squat about farming and ranching, but I can operate equipment...