Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Upstream Project Supervisor

🎯 Role Definition

The Upstream Project Supervisor coordinates and supervises the planning, execution and close-out of upstream oil & gas projects — including drilling, completion, workovers, well interventions, facilities upgrades and brownfield modifications — ensuring safe, compliant, on-time and on-budget delivery. This role acts as the primary on-site technical and operational lead, managing contractors, interfacing with engineering, HSE, operations and commercial teams, controlling cost and schedule, and resolving technical and logistical issues that impact wellsite and field operations.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Field Engineer / Wellsite Engineer transitioning to supervisory responsibility
Drilling Supervisor or Completion Supervisor with hands-on well operations experience
Production / Operations Engineer with project execution exposure

Advancement To:

Upstream Project Manager (multi-project responsibility)
Asset Manager or Operations Manager for an oil & gas field
Senior Superintendent / Construction Manager for major upstream projects

Lateral Moves:

Well Operations Manager or Drilling Superintendent
HSE & Integrity Manager for upstream assets
Commissioning & Start-up Lead

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead and supervise all phases of upstream project execution (drilling, completion, workover, well intervention and small brownfield facilities) onshore and offshore, ensuring alignment with the project scope, technical specifications, and HSE requirements.
Develop, maintain and manage detailed project schedules using Primavera P6 / MS Project; monitor critical path activities and enact recovery plans to minimize schedule slippage.
Implement and enforce HSE, permit-to-work and site safety procedures; conduct pre-mobilization HSE reviews and lead toolbox talks, safety audits and incident investigations on site.
Manage day-to-day contractor performance and subcontractor teams, including scopes of work, method statements, manpower planning, performance monitoring and adherence to contractual KPIs.
Control project cost and budget through detailed cost tracking, forecasting, change order evaluation, and timely issuance of progress reports to stakeholders and project controls.
Coordinate multidisciplinary technical activities with drilling, completions, reservoir, production, subsea and facilities engineering to ensure constructability and technical compliance.
Execute wellsite logistics planning and coordination (rig mobilization, equipment movements, third-party services, materials and spares) to optimize rig time and minimize demobilization risk.
Oversee quality control and assurance activities during construction, installations and well operations to ensure compliance with engineering specifications, API/ISO industry standards and company QA/QC programs.
Review and approve job packs, procedures, risk assessments (JSA, HAZID, HAZOP), Lifting Plans and method statements prior to work execution.
Evaluate and manage project technical risks and opportunities; develop and implement mitigation measures and contingency plans that minimize operational and financial exposure.
Facilitate technical meetings, progress reviews, and site coordination meetings; provide clear and concise status updates to project leads, operations managers and senior stakeholders.
Supervise commissioning, start-up and handover activities for wells and small facilities, ensuring mechanical completion, pre-commissioning checks and documentation readiness for operations.
Ensure regulatory and permitting compliance (local and national oil & gas regulations), secure right-of-way and environmental approvals, and coordinate inspections by authorities as required.
Drive continuous improvement by capturing lessons learned, leading post-job reviews, and implementing corrective actions to reduce repeat incidents and improve execution efficiency.
Lead procurement activities for long lead equipment, services and materials in coordination with procurement and commercial teams, ensuring vendor qualification and timely delivery.
Administer contract changes, claims and variations; compile supporting documentation for commercial negotiations and work with legal/commercial to resolve disputes.
Supervise well testing and flowback operations, liaising with reservoir and production teams to optimize initial production and data capture for reservoir evaluation.
Manage integrity and maintenance coordination for temporary installations, wellheads and surface facilities used during project execution.
Provide leadership and mentorship to field teams, including training of junior supervisors, engineers and contractors on safe work practices, project standards and company procedures.
Ensure accurate, up-to-date project documentation and records (daily reports, non-conformance reports, technical logs, material certificates) are maintained and archived for audit readiness.
Act as on-call technical escalation point for emergent field issues, making timely and informed operational decisions to safeguard people, environment and assets.
Coordinate environmental protection measures and community liaison activities associated with onshore project execution, minimizing local impact and maintaining social license to operate.
Support risk-based integrity assessments and monitoring programs during execution to identify degradation modes and recommend remediation or design changes.
Maintain strong stakeholder engagement across operations, commercial, supply chain, reservoir and external contractors to align priorities and drive efficient execution.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
Provide input to development of standard operating procedures and project execution playbooks.
Assist in budgeting and forecasting cycles by providing site-level resource and cost estimates.
Support emergency response and business continuity planning at field level.
Participate in competency assessments and recruitment for field engineering roles.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Project management and execution for upstream oil & gas projects (drilling, completions, workovers, brownfield mods).
Proficiency with Primavera P6 and MS Project for schedule development and control.
Strong understanding of drilling and well completions processes, rig systems and well control fundamentals.
Familiarity with engineering disciplines: subsea systems, surface facilities, process, mechanical and electrical interfaces.
Cost control, budgeting and earned value management (EVM) principles.
Contract and contractor management, including SOW development, commercial variations and claims handling.
Regulatory compliance and permitting for onshore/offshore oil & gas operations.
HSE management systems, permit-to-work, JSA, HAZID/HAZOP and incident investigation techniques.
Quality assurance / quality control practices and documentation management.
Practical knowledge of well testing, flowback operations and production handover processes.
Competence with SAP/work order systems or equivalent for asset management and procurement tracking.
Risk assessment and mitigation planning (FMEA, Bow-Tie, risk registers).
Familiarity with subsea installation techniques, lifting & rigging engineering and marine logistics (for offshore roles).
Data documentation and reporting skills, including daily reporting, KPIs and progress dashboards.
Technical competency in well integrity and corrosion basics for short-term project interventions.

Soft Skills

Strong leadership and people management with proven ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams in remote and high-pressure environments.
Excellent verbal and written communication for clear handovers, reporting and stakeholder engagement.
Decisive problem solving and rapid operational decision-making under ambiguity.
Negotiation skills for contractor interfaces, claims and scope clarifications.
Adaptability and resilience to manage changing priorities and field contingencies.
Time management, prioritization and ability to drive multiple concurrent workstreams.
Coaching and mentoring capability to develop junior field staff and contractors.
Cultural awareness and community engagement skills for onshore operations in diverse regions.
Analytical mindset with attention to detail for technical reviews and QA/QC.
Collaborative approach with strong interpersonal skills to align cross-functional teams.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in Petroleum Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or related engineering discipline.

Preferred Education:

Master's degree in Petroleum/Mechanical/Project Management, or MBA preferred for progression to senior project roles.
Certifications such as PMP, NEBOSH/IOSH, Well Control (IWCF/WellCAP), or Primavera training are advantageous.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Petroleum Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Offshore Engineering
Project Management

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

5 to 12+ years of combined upstream field and project execution experience, with at least 3–5 years in a supervisory or lead role overseeing wellsite or brownfield project delivery.

Preferred:

Proven track record delivering upstream drilling/completion or brownfield modification projects in onshore and offshore environments.
Experience managing multi-contractor teams, complex logistics, and interfacing with regulatory authorities.
Prior exposure to digital tools for scheduling, reporting and EHS management; demonstrated continuous improvement contributions and incident-free execution history.