ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - 12
Organizational Culture
Adaptability
This often sets successful companies apart from the
also-rans, regardless of the economic climate. And so it
is with Blue Spark, where heated debates are common
at the boardroom table but the notions of respect and
collaboration provide the umbrella under which everything
fits. This means you can have your say and voice
disagreement without fear of reprisal.
Beyond that, employees are provided a flexible, fun
environment that places a premium on work-life balance.
After all, this is above all a family business. When Todd
took the leap, he made sure his family was on board. This
meant that his wife, Jennifer, a teacher with a background in
biochemistry and mathematics, and two daughters backed
his play. Now 17 and 15, the girls are looking to follow the
family science trade, with one considering a career in
bioengineering and the other looking at medicine. All of
which makes the CEO acutely aware that the need to enjoy
your work sometimes outweighs profit and loss columns.
Take, for example, Hallowe'en.
This tends to be another key to long-term viability, and
so it is with Blue Spark, where leadership is nothing if not
forward looking. As noted above, the company sought out
international markets rather than navel-gazing and moaning
that Canada's economy was cratering. Compounding the
recession, though, was an equally-significant challenge.
As Todd explains it, the sector has never been reticent
to innovate-oil and gas thrives on finding technological
improvements, but only inasmuch as that innovation is
perceived to be necessary. And that was the problem.
First, O&G, perhaps understandably, assesses value in
terms of reserves, or potential, even if that potential lies
at the bottom of a blocked, unusable well. The very fact
of having the oil overrides the organization's inability to
extract it. Second, if the blockage can't be cleaned up using
explosives or hydrochloric acid-and often it cannot-then
companies tend to move on to the next site and, as noted
above, list the untapped reserves as a corporate asset.
In many instances, Todd and his business development
team would encounter indifference, since the perceived
value of their offer was low. It wasn't that people thought
the WASP® technology ineffective; it was more a case of,
"Meh! If I can't blow it up or dissolve it, who cares! I'll drill
another well somewhere else."
Blue Spark's team found less reticence in Europe,
particularly the North Sea, where a completely
unanticipated use for the WASP® emerged. On an
offshore platform, the subsea safety valve must
constantly be tested to avoid creating another Macondo
oil field disaster. Significant debris builds up on that valve
and Todd's engineers and technologists discovered their
system could clean the valve more reliably than traditional
means. North Sea work now represents a significant
chunk of Blue Spark's business. How did they achieve
these results? They talked to people, listened actively to
descriptions of problems, and developed an application
that solved the issues-adaptability personified.
Notwithstanding the impact of offshore work on the
bottom line, traditional well remediation represents the
biggest growth potential. Realizing the need to take a more
aggressive approach to business development, in 2005,
Blue Spark participated in the establishment of an arm's
length investment group taking equity positions in some
of the assets the tech side was working on. Seeing the
need to prove the real value of its technology, Blue Spark
opted to put the proof back in the pudding by investing its
own cash with a group buying and remediating wells. It
was a great way to put your money where your mouth is
and serves as the ultimate case study-one that generates
revenue while proving its point. This will never be a major
part of Blue Spark's business but it's another way to keep
the lights on during a downturn. Adaptability.
What?
Yup. Hallowe'en. Everyone at Blue Spark, and we
mean everyone, has to dress according to the year in
question's designated theme. Take 2015, for example.
Things were still a bit tense on the business development
front but on October 31, everyone showed up as a minor
Star Wars personality, and you were expected to know
the character's back story. So why is this important?
Because it highlights that 'Doing things better' doesn't refer
only to widgets; it means building and nurturing a vibrant
corporate personality that values individuals as well as
revenue.
12 | SPRING 2017 | TECHNOLOGY ALBERTA
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017
Table of Contents
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - Cover1
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - Cover2
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - 3
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - Table of Contents
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - 5
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - 6
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ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - Cover3
ASET Technology Alberta Spring 2017 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2020
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2019
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_dec2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/aset55anniversary
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2018
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2017
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2017
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2017
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_winter_2016
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_fall_2015
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_summer_2015
https://www.nxtbook.com/dawson/aset/ta_spring_2015
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