A Letter from the Vice President
By Catie Donahue
Our May General Meeting marks a transition from our traditional dinner meetings to a more casual and interactive format. Over the past nine months, the Houston Geological Society (HGS) has worked hard to evolve our events to serve our members better, and we hope you’ve noticed the changes. We've consistently heard that members find the greatest value in in-person interactions, preferring more conversation and connection over lengthy lectures. With that in mind, we are excited to announce that the final HGS General evening meeting of this term will be more interactive with the presentation held at Spanish Flowers on Main Street in the Heights. It’s fitting that Jeff Spencer will lead this meeting, reflecting on the challenges of being an Oil Historian in modern times. As professionals in the energy industry, we know we must react quickly to changing environments, and as an organization, HGS recognizes the need to stay dynamic and flexible in the face of ongoing challenges as well. A historical review can provide all of us with the context we need to face budget constraints, changing demographics, and fast-paced economic cycles.
My term as Vice President is wrapping up and I want to reflect on a few of the efforts the Technical Committee undertook. First, for members who don’t know, the Technical Committee comprises representatives from five different groups: North America Exploration, International Exploration, Environmental & Engineers, New Energies, and the Private Equity Committee. This group coordinates and solicits the technical content of the HGS. For those of you who would like to influence the topics that are presented, please get in touch with the HGS Vice President to join the committee. I assure you, it does not need to be a large time commitment, but direct input from our membership is critical.
This year, and in recognition of the limited growth in participation at our technical talks, our committee focused on a constant critique we hear: meetings are too long, too expensive, often don’t include support for career development, and don’t recognize our rapidly changing industry behaviors. As a committee made up of active professionals, we understood the need for change, while also preserving the legacy and value that has built the reputation of the HGS.
This year, we successfully streamlined our evening meetings, shortening their length to accommodate better members facing long evening commutes, and bringing in sponsors to help reduce costs where we could.
Starting in January, we reintroduced lunch meetings, rotating locations to make them more accessible. These lunch gatherings offered focused technical content at a lower attendance cost and were more compatible with our members' busy schedules and the need for evening work/life balance. Attendance and feedback have been overwhelmingly positive, and we are excited to continue this format in the fall.
Additionally, we have diversified our presentation styles: for example, in December, we hosted a very successful career development panel discussion, which addressed employment uncertainties and provided support for developing an HGS mentorship program in the near future (more details coming soon).
Beyond logistics, we expanded our programming to include a broader range of topics, from international and domestic technical work to career development and broader energy industry issues. I wanted to highlight these improvements because they resulted directly from member feedback collected through our various surveys. Please fill them out when you see them or share your thoughts with an HGS officer directly. This is the true strength of local organizations — to listen to members and act upon their needs. It has been an honor to serve as Vice President of HGS. As I wrap up my term, I leave you with two thoughts: please continue to share your feedback, and I hope to see you all at our last evening meeting on May 12th at 5:30 PM at Spanish Flowers on Main Street!
Catherine Donohue