People and Process: Integration of Technology and Organizational Alignment for Successful Implementation of a Strategic Capital Investment Portfolio

Abstract

Choosing the best projects to fund is easy. Our challenge is trying to weigh the complexities of the projects that are at the threshold for funding in a capital-constrained environment. Even though all the projects under consideration might be economically viable on a stand-alone basis, we seek to determine which suite of capital funding options best meets our long-term goals. Apache Corporation maintains a broad inventory of operating assets and investment opportunities, composed of projects with considerable variability with regard to uncertainty in potential performance and risk of financial loss. The opportunity suite consists of projects with highly varying capital investment patterns and production profiles. Further, the project portfolio faces varying exposure to commodity markets, petroleum fiscal regimes, and aboveground operational and sovereign risks. Apache has found that implementing and sustaining a portfolio process requires technical solutions and application of best practices for three critical elements: Production Forecasting, Project Modeling & Economic Evaluation, and Portfolio Management & Decision Making. A robust portfolio process for investment decision-making requires organizational alignment around a shared vision for value recognition and a rigorous, disciplined approach to capital allocation. Value recognition is critically dependent on establishing internal practices and standards for consistent application of methods and tools in characterizing cash flow potential from the suite of investment opportunities. Apache’s implementation of a portfolio process was undertaken as a sequence of initiatives with clear deliverables focused on building critical capabilities and infrastructure within key groups, while driving organizational alignment around the process. Major steps in the change management effort included: creation of a portfolio modeling groupshifting focus from well characterizations to project characterizationssoftware and systems investmentsorganizational alignmentexecutive adoption Over the past decade, Apache has undertaken a major shift in strategic focus toward organic growth, by placing significant investments in North American unconventional resource plays. The worldwide portfolio of opportunities became increasingly complex in terms of demand for capital, pattern of cash flows, and uncertainty in outcomes. Comparing and contrasting the performance potential and limitations of the opportunity set, in the context of corporate goals and constraints, became increasingly difficult with standard ranking methodologies. Apache’s portfolio reached the enviable state of possessing more projects in inventory than capital available for funding. With each business unit (BU) focused on extending and optimizing its own opportunity set the overall, integrated value for the corporation was not fully recognized. A realignment of processes and a shift in cultural perspective emphasizing an integrated whole was needed.