Strategic Plan

Note: This plan was published in The Leading Edge President’s Page, July 2001 and August 2001.

The SEG Strategic Plan; Part 1

Future decades will bring vast technological and social change in which geophysics will play a central role. As the leading international applied geophysics professional society, the SEG must plan and act.

It is essential that the SEG have a vision of the future, understand its mission, and develop successful strategies.

The current Executive Committee has spent considerable effort and solicited input in developing a strategic plan for SEG. The process involved looking into the future, anticipating what kind of a world we can expect to encounter and then defining what directions SEG should pursue in view of that expected world. This President’s Page and the next will summarize the results.

In this month’s page we describe a vision of the future and present the missions that we believe SEG should undertake. We also summarize the operational strategic elements (initial letters capitalized) and tactics (blue type) that we should pursue. Next month’s column will expand and define specific strategies and examples of tactics related to the six missions outlined below.

We recognize there is a diversity of opinions, perspectives, and priorities within the SEG membership. The strategic plan is an evolving and living document. Please review these columns and give us your feedback. Help us build for the future.

—SALLY ZINKE, WALT LYNN, ALLEN BERTAGNE, YORAM SHOHAM, PETER ANNAN, RICHARD VERM, and CHRIS LINER

Vision

What will the world look like, geophysically speaking?

• The scope of geophysics will broaden and will be vital in key arenas, including resource industries, the environment, and engineering.

• The world will continue to depend on hydrocarbons, both for energy and petrochemical raw materials.

• There will be a growing emphasis on using resources in an environmentally safe and sustainable manner with particular concern on the carbon budget and atmospheric change.

• Concepts and developments from other disciplines will increasingly impact geophysical applications.

• Divisions between subsurface disciplines will blur and cooperation with other sciences and technologies will grow.

• Technological advances will accelerate changes in the content and delivery of education and the way we work.

• Abundant opportunities to apply broader geophysical principles and technologies in new settings will emerge.

Mission

How will the SEG succeed in the envisioned future?

SEG is the leading international applied geophysics professional society and to best serve our membership will:

1) further the role of geophysics in resource exploration and development

2) promote and expand the use of geophysical science in engineering and infrastructure development and for environmental purposes

3) exploit new educational and communications developments to increase the effectiveness of its members

4) design and promote educational programs to effectively integrate knowledge to/from other disciplines with applied geophysics

5) foster common scientific interests and play an active role in the changing nature of research and development

6) encourage high professional standing, scientific excellence, and skills required to expand into new disciplines and businesses

Operational strategy and tactics

SEG will continue to operate on a fiscally sound basis with high ethical standards and clear business principles

• conduct annual review of all SEG programs and activities

• investigate revenue opportunities to reduce financial dependence on Annual Meeting

• consider joint meetings and membership with other societies

• improve relationship with public sources of money

Continually evaluate merits and shortcomings of merging services provided by subsurface societies

Maintain institutional memory

• set up Strategic Planning Committee to continually update strategy

• extend Executive Committee term to two years for all elected officers

Continually review and update corporate governance

• continually review SEG governance to ensure proper representation from all districts

Ensure that the overall strategy recognizes the increased globalization of SEG

The SEG Strategic Plan; Part 2

In last month’s column, we introduced the initial results of the strategic planning process that your Executive Committee has been involved with over the last year. We outlined a Vision of the future, proposed Missions for SEG, and summarized general Strategies that we will pursue. We stressed that geophysics and geophysicists will play a central role in the industry’s future.

This month we list Strategies that will allow us as a society to achieve each of the Missions. At first these points might appear dry and, you might think, irrelevant to you. In fact, these Missions and Strategies are about us as a Society (and as individuals) making ever-increasing contributions to the future and taking a leadership role; our industry has made enormous contributions to the modern world and will increasingly do so during our lifetimes.

Mission 1 recognizes that, as in the past, geophysics will play the key role in resource exploration and development in general and hydrocarbons in particular. SEG can help that role increase. In order to do so, our members need to recognize the rapid changes in technology and, more significantly, the applications of that technology. We also must get society at large to better understand the critical contributions we are making to improve people’s lives and to support us in our challenging work.

Geophysics can also play an increasing role in non-exploration related fields such as engineering and environment and SEG will encourage that development (Mission 2). Because indepth knowledge of these subjects is not common among our membership, we will need to associate and cooperate with other groups and societies that are directly involved in these fields. We should better understand the problems that need to be solved and develop geophysical solutions for those problems.

Also, we must not overlook the way we are perceived by society and continually work to improve our image and perceived value.

As individuals, we must keep up with evolving technologies if we are to be valuable to our companies and countries. Mission 3 aims to ensure that SEG uses technology to help its members keep up with technical developments and also become more rounded. This will increase our ability to take leadership roles in the future world, rather than only being technical experts that, say, turn out attractive maps. We also must have plans to ensure a steady pool of talent ready to take on the challenges in the future.

Some significant advances in technology will likely take place in other industries (some of the best physical modeling work is being funded and driven by Hollywood!). Mission 4 recognizes this and strives to facilitate recognition of these developments and use of those advances to improve our methods and become better at what we do.

The world of geophysical research is very different today than in the past. We believe that SEG as an impartial technically driven group can and should play a role in ensuring that research moves forward in this new era (Mission 5).

Finally, it has always been important for us as a Society to recognize excellence. This provides a sense of satisfaction for those who have given much, role models for younger members, and continuity. We have done this well in the past and will continue to do this going forward (Mission 6).

To summarize, we present a plan that will allow SEG to expand its horizons and play a more significant role in the future of the world. This means building upon some things we have done in the past and adding new areas of focus.

We invite you to review this introduction and the specific Missions and Strategies below and to offer feedback and perspective.

This is your Society and your future; if we are to succeed you too need to rise to the challenge and play your part. We look forward to hearing from you.

—SALLY ZINKE, WALT LYNN, ALLEN BERTAGNE, YORAM SHOHAM, PETER ANNAN, RICHARD VERM, AND CHRIS LINER

Strategies related to specific missions

Mission 1: Further the role of geophysics in resource exploration and development.

• Support and enhance the preeminent role of geophysics in exploration/development of hydrocarbons.

• Document and communicate the value of geophysical applications and technology advances.

• Strengthen ties with government and public entities.

• Strengthen geophysical applications for nonhydrocarbon resources.

Mission 2: Promote and expand the use of geophysical science in engineering and infrastructure development and for environmental purposes.

• Increase intersociety relations with emphasis on non- E&P societies.

• Act to improve the environmental image of our Society and industry.

• Increase geophysicists’ understanding of environmental problems and issues and encourage proactive identification of geophysical solutions.

• Promote public awareness of the beneficial applications of geophysics to environmental, engineering, and infrastructure problems and issues.

Mission 3: Exploit new educational and communications developments to increase the effectiveness of its members.

• Actively keep abreast of latest communication and education technologies.

• Increase members’ business acumen and competence.

• Increase members’ international cultural understanding.

• Foster programs to incorporate earth science into general education curricula.

Mission 4: Design and promote educational programs to effectively integrate knowledge to/from other disciplines with applied geophysics.

• Monitor education opportunities and needs in relevant disciplines; facilitate dissemination of information.

• Identify relevant education opportunities (universities, societies, and private entities) and incorporate in SEG curriculum, and promote CE courses to other industries.

• Develop and implement an action plan to facilitate interactions of subsurface disciplines.

Mission 5: Foster common scientific interests and play an active role in the changing nature of research and development.

• Facilitate linkage to technology strategic planning.

• Identify and monitor trends in technology development.

• Identify collective R&D projects and potential funding.

• Foster cooperation with other societies on forums, etc.

Mission 6: Encourage SEG membership to maintain high professional standing, scientific excellence, and skills required to expand into new disciplines and businesses.

• Continue public recognition for scientific, technical, and professional excellence.

• Disseminate groundbreaking, unconventional, or new technologies.