INDUSTRIES
Energy, oil and gas leadership search
Energy companies are running leaner after a wave of mergers, while power demand from data centers is pulling the same people in new directions. Here's what makes each leadership search hard right now, what to look for, and what to watch out for.
The market right now
- (BLS data via Rigzone, July 2026)
- (Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, June 2026)
- (US Department of Energy, 2026 US Energy and Employment Report)
- (Deloitte, March 2026)
- (Journal of Petroleum Technology, March 2023)
Leadership roles we recruit
In demand now
- Director of Grid Interconnection
- Director of Gas-Fired Generation Development
- Head of Power Trading and Origination
- Director of Carbon Capture (CCUS)
- Director of Emissions and Methane Compliance
- Director of Digital Operations and AI
- Director of Nuclear Operations and Engineering
Role guides
VP of Operations and Directors of Engineering
- Why it's hard right now
- Mergers removed management layers, strong directors often hold retention packages, and service companies are competing for the same people. In the Dallas Fed's Q2 2026 survey, one executive said "customers are hiring our people." (Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Q2 2026)
- What to look for
- Personal ownership of cost per foot and lease operating expense. Results in the same basin. More output with a flat headcount. Remote operations and automation. A PE license for facilities roles.
- Watch out for
- Staff roles at super-majors with no field or P&L accountability. Results described only as "the team's." Experience only in up-cycles.
- Pay data
- In oil and gas extraction, the BLS mean is $169,280 for petroleum engineers and $194,910 for general and operations managers (May 2024 data, published May 2026).
Plant and Refinery Manager
- Why it's hard right now
- There are fewer sites and higher stakes. US refining capacity fell by more than 250,000 barrels per calendar day in 2025 after three closures (Oil & Gas Journal with EIA data, June 2026), and wider refining margins in 2026 make every hour of downtime more expensive (EIA, July 2026).
- What to look for
- Ownership of Process Safety Management. Turnarounds delivered on budget. Union relations. Credibility with regulators and the community.
- Watch out for
- Only wind-down experience. Turnaround overruns blamed on contractors. Process safety events they can't explain.
- Pay data
- In petroleum and coal products manufacturing, the BLS mean is $149,230 for industrial production managers and $176,140 for general and operations managers (May 2024 data).
Director of Health, Safety and Environment
- Why it's hard right now
- Methane compliance deadlines keep moving (Harvard Environmental and Energy Law Program, June 2026), and the role needs both process safety and occupational safety depth. Transportation incidents caused 38.2% of US work deaths in 2024. (BLS, February 2026)
- What to look for
- CSP, plus CIH or ASP where relevant. Serious injury and fatality prevention using leading indicators. Contractor safety management. Incident investigation and root cause analysis. Permitting.
- Watch out for
- A safety story told only through injury rates. A "compliance cop" style. Credentials without field time.
- Pay data
- The median safety professional salary was $105,000, and $120,000 for CSP holders, across industries. (BCSP, December 2023)
VP and Director of Supply Chain
- Why it's hard right now
- Tariffs and long lead times. 26% of exploration and production executives said tariffs raised drilling costs by 4% to 6% (Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, July 2025), transformer lead times reach up to four years (PwC via pv magazine, May 2026), and combined-cycle gas plant lead times reached five years (Oilprice.com, February 2026).
- What to look for
- Category strategy for tubulars, sand and rotating equipment. Trade and tariff compliance. Frame agreements and reserved manufacturing slots. CPSM or CSCP.
- Watch out for
- Purely transactional purchasing. Savings claims with no total-cost view.
Director of Capital Projects and Project Director
- Why it's hard right now
- 80% of contractors struggle to fill salaried roles and 82% struggle to fill craft roles (Associated General Contractors via Utility Dive, January 2026), and LNG and power projects compete for the same project leaders.
- What to look for
- Owner-side leadership through the full stage-gate process. Sanctioned versus actual cost and schedule on large projects. EPC contracting strategy. PMP and PE.
- Watch out for
- Only contractor-side experience when you need an owner's lead. Can't give sanctioned-versus-actual numbers.
Director of Asset Management, Maintenance and Reliability
- Why it's hard right now
- There are shortages of mechanics, maintenance workers and technicians, and nearly 60% of the workforce will need upskilling over the next decade. (Deloitte, May 2025) Long equipment lead times make spares strategy critical.
- What to look for
- ISO 55001, reliability-centered maintenance, risk-based inspection (API 580 and 581), disciplined maintenance-system data (SAP PM or Maximo), CMRP, and measured gains in uptime.
- Watch out for
- A reactive firefighter. A maintenance-system rollout with no uptime result.
Land, Geoscience and Reservoir Engineering leaders
- Why it's hard right now
- About 27% of US geoscientists may retire by 2029 (Latitude Media, March 2025), geoscience enrollment is down nearly 30% since 2015 (AAPG, December 2025), and lithium, geothermal and carbon storage compete for the same people.
- What to look for
- For land, CPL, M&A diligence, joint operating agreement negotiation, federal leasing, and the SR/WA right-of-way credential for power and transmission work. For geoscience and reservoir, a PG license where required, reserves booked under PRMS or SEC rules, and well results compared with pre-drill forecasts.
- Watch out for
- No M&A diligence experience. Reserves never audited.
- Pay data
- The BLS mean for geoscientists in oil and gas extraction is $170,930 (May 2024 data).
VP of Business Development and Commercial
- Why it's hard right now
- Prices are volatile, with Brent swinging between $118 and $72 in Q2 2026 (EIA, July 2026), and there are new buyers: data center power demand is projected to grow from 47 GW in 2025 to more than 176 GW by 2035. (Deloitte, March 2026)
- What to look for
- Closed deals with value and structure. LNG and gas offtake. Acquisitions and divestitures. Risk management. Relationships with hyperscalers and utilities.
- Watch out for
- Pipeline talk with no closed deals. Relationships that belong to a big brand, not the person.
Director of Renewables, Energy Transition and Power
- Why it's hard right now
- Policy has shifted. Wind and solar projects must start construction by July 4, 2026 or be placed in service by the end of 2027 to keep federal tax credits (Bipartisan Policy Center, January 2026). The interconnection queue holds 2,061 GW, and projects take more than five years to reach commercial operation (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, July 2026).
- What to look for
- Megawatts brought to commercial operation, not just pipeline. Tax-credit safe harbor and foreign-entity compliance. Interconnection experience. Storage and gas hybrid projects.
- Watch out for
- Gigawatts of pipeline with few projects actually built. A plan that hasn't adapted to the 2025 tax law changes.
How TAP runs this search
We start with an intake that goes deeper than the job description, then map who is doing this job today at companies like yours, including leaders in adjacent sectors like power, LNG and oilfield services who've solved the same problems. Every candidate is interviewed in depth before you meet them, and you get a private website on each finalist: interview video, a rating on each of your requirements, compensation, timing and why we recommend them. Our goal is your hire from the first two candidates we present.
Hiring for one of these roles, or want a second opinion on how to recruit for it?
Across our careers, we've recruited for roles like these. Tell us what you're hiring for and we'll share what we'd look out for, whether or not you start a search with us.
Frequently asked questions
- Yes. Many of the hardest searches now sit where the two overlap: gas-fired generation, grid interconnection, carbon capture and power for data centers.
- Most of our searches take 4 to 10 weeks, depending on the role and the market.
- 25% of the new leader's first-year compensation. On most packages, an engagement fee paid at the start is credited toward it, and the placement fee is invoiced on your new leader's start date. See the full fee guide.
Sources
- Rigzone, US oil and gas workforce (BLS data), July 2026: https://www.rigzone.com/news/usa_oil_gas_workforce_drops_from_may_to_june-15-jul-2026-184136-article/
- Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, June 2026: https://www.dallasfed.org/research/swe/2026/swe2614
- US Department of Energy, 2026 US Energy and Employment Report: https://www.energy.gov/documents/2026-useer-national-report
- Deloitte, data centers and power companies compete for workforce, March 2026: https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/power-and-utilities/data-centers-power-companies-compete-for-workforce.html
- Journal of Petroleum Technology, March 2023: https://jpt.spe.org/us-petroleum-engineering-graduation-rates-keep-falling-but-oil-execs-are-not-complaining-yet
- Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Energy Survey, Q2 2026: https://www.dallasfed.org/research/surveys/des/2026/2602
- BLS Monthly Labor Review, oil and gas industries wages, May 2026: https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2026/article/occupational-employment-and-wages-in-oil-and-gas-industries-may-2024.htm
- Oil & Gas Journal, US refinery capacity, June 2026: https://www.ogj.com/refining-processing/refining/capacities/news/55387379/us-refinery-capacity-declines-in-2025-amid-plant-closures
- EIA, Today in Energy, July 2026: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=67865
- Harvard Environmental and Energy Law Program, methane standards tracker, June 2026: https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/tracker/epa-voc-and-methane-standards-for-oil-and-gas-facilities-2/
- BLS, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, February 2026: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cfoi.nr0.htm
- BCSP, safety manager salary, December 2023: https://www.bcsp.org/bcsp-news/about/bcsp-news/how-much-does-a-safety-manager-make
- Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Energy Survey, July 2025: https://www.dallasfed.org/research/surveys/des/2025/2502
- pv magazine, US transformer market, May 2026: https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2026/05/11/u-s-transformer-market-faces-severe-supply-constraints-as-lead-times-extend-to-four-years/
- Oilprice.com, gas turbine shortage, February 2026: https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/US-Power-Boom-Triggers-Global-Gas-Turbine-Shortage.html
- Utility Dive, labor and tariffs, January 2026: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/labor-tariffs-collide-with-data-center-boom/810004/
- Deloitte, energy and chemicals workforce, May 2025: https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/chemicals-and-specialty-materials/energy-chemicals-workforce-transformation.html
- Latitude Media, geologist shortage, March 2025: https://www.latitudemedia.com/news/the-imminent-geologist-shortage/
- AAPG, geoscience enrollment, December 2025: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/geoscience-enrollment-down-nearly-30-aapg-launches-new-student-campaign-to-protect-the-future-energy-workforce-302632368.html
- Bipartisan Policy Center, 2025 reconciliation energy provisions, January 2026: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/explainer/2025-reconciliation-debate-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-energy-provisions/
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, interconnection queues, July 2026: https://emp.lbl.gov/news/backlog-power-plants-seeking-transmission-grid-connection-eased-somewhat-2025-amidst
Last reviewed September 2026