DAVID PERRY
Business Development Manager David joined Petrofac seven years ago in Perth. He has worked in the oil and gas industry for 18 years and was recruited to develop our business in the region.

Our mantra of delivering safe, efficient, reliable solutions for operations is really attractive to clients. As a business development team, we try to cross sell at every opportunity we can. We have a good story – we offer an end-to-end programme, which attracts support from smaller operators out here as they have to be as efficient as they can. We’re on the cusp of some very big projects, including a new energy project, which is very exciting. We stick to the things we do well, but we are pretty broad in what we can provide, so it is an interesting business.

I enjoy being part of a team that wins projects you really go after. In 2015, we were asked to bid for the INPEX project because of our reputation. It was a unique opportunity to displace an incumbent, and we had to convince the client that their leap of faith was worthwhile – that we deliver what we say we will. Winning the INPEX project was probably the foundation for us in Australia. It was the largest asset build in the world and a multimillion-dollar project. We had around 120 people working on the project, so it was a real global effort to deliver it with the expertise we had. We are still supporting them now with their operational business objectives.

In this role, you have to be able to listen – not only talk. You often have to analyse quickly on your feet and recognise what’s an opportunity and what’s not. We try to be as far-seeing into the future as we can, to identify projects we believe are going to be successful and the businesses will invest in. It’s vital to engage as early as possible with prospective clients to understand their business drivers. We also look at emerging companies and those which have an appetite to work in a certain way. Then, we can be first on their doorstep and offer them a solution that’s of value to them.

The people are the best part of my job. While oil and gas is a serious business, I like those who can also see the funny side of things. I think you can be successful while sharing light-hearted moments with your clients. It makes you happier and you deliver a better product.

I go surfing as much as I can – I love being outdoors doing any sport I can get involved in. My wife is from New Zealand, so I often get the opportunity to surf there too. Combining a little leisure time with business travel is one of the great parts of doing a business development role.

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