Mays Business School hosts 2019 Energy Symposium

Shannon Deer, Assistant Dean for Graduate Programs at Mays Business School, hosted the 2019 Mays Business School Energy Symposium on March 15 at Texas A&M University’s CityCentre campus in west Houston. Attendees included current and former students representing Mays Houston-based degree programs in all areas of the energy sector.

Energy is one of the three Strategic Initiatives in Mays’ Strategic Plan.

Guy Baber ’06, Vice President of Investor Relations at Marathon Oil Corporation, delivered the keynote. He began with his family’s history in the field and his personal passion and commitment to the energy sector. His discussion included how market forces have changed the upstream landscape over the past several years and how investor preferences continue to evolve. He then fielded questions from those in attendance and remarked on how the industry will likely reach equilibrium once U.S. operators commit to growing production responsibly and living within cash flows.

After the keynote, Deer moderated a panel discussion with speakers:

• Brett Knowles ’11, Vice President at EnCap Flatrock Midstream
• Amanda Martin-Brock, Chief Operating Officer at Solaris Midstream
• Shaun Toralde, Global Business Director at Weatherford
• Corey Walter ’10, VP NGLs and Olefins Trader at Goldman Sachs

The panel rounded out the previous discussion by providing a holistic view of the oil and gas industry focused more on the midstream and downstream sectors. It then concluded with an engaging Q&A session that highlighted how midstream companies continue to respond to operational constraints fueled by the growing supply of domestic production.

Mays CityCentre facility in west Houston houses the Executive MBA, Professional MBA, and MS Analytics degree programs, as well as executive education. It is also available for rental to third parties.

Deer, who coordinated the event, worked before she joined higher education as an auditor for PwC with large public energy companies as well as smaller clients in the upstream sector. In addition to her current duties as assistant dean, Deer teaches an Energy Finance elective for Mays’ Houston-based Professional MBA Program.