Parker Drilling appoints Sandy Esslemont President, Chief Executive Officer and Member of the Board of Directors
Parker Drilling has announced that its Board of Directors, following a global search led by Heidrick & Struggles, has appointed Sandy Esslemont, a veteran of the oil and gas industry, to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr Esslemont will also join the company’s board of directors. Mr Esslemont succeeds Gary Rich, who retired from the company at the end of 2019.
“We are very pleased to welcome Mr Esslemont as Parker’s new chief executive,” Gene Davis, Chairman of the Parker Board, said. “The board conducted an extensive, global search for the best executive positioned to drive Parker’s growth and profitability. With a track record of creating value for multiple companies and across industry cycles, we are confident that Mr Esslemont has the vision, experience, deep knowledge of our business, and leadership qualities to propel the company forward, and we look forward to working with him.”
“I have admired Parker for its reputation for service and reliability, which has been earned over many years through strong customer relationships and a value-added offering,” Mr Esslemont said. “It is an honor to join Parker, and I look forward to working with the board and the talented Parker team to create value for the company and for our stakeholders.”
Mr Esslemont has more than 37 years of international oil and gas industry experience in drilling operations, petroleum technology, and executive management. He has held leadership roles at privately held, publicly traded, and venture-backed companies in roles based in the US, Africa, Asia, Europe, Australasia, and the Middle East, the majority of which are in the oilfield services and related industries. Prior to joining Parker, he served as CEO for Abrado, a Houston-based company he helped found, and before that was CEO and Chairman of SensorTran Inc., which was sold to Halliburton under his leadership.
Mr. Esslemont holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh, and is an active member of Society of Petroleum Engineers.
