What a year on the road taught me — it really does start with us

By Roddie Mackenzie, 2026 IADC Chairman

When I started my term as 2026 IADC Chairman, I kept coming back to one idea: If I was going to ask our members to fully engage — to show up, to participate, to believe in what we do — then I had better be willing to do the same. So I made the decision early on to get out and see as much of this association as I could, wherever our chapters and our people were.

As my term winds down, I’d like to share what I experienced out there, and I couldn’t be more excited to tell you about it because it’s only reinforced how I think about IADC and our industry at large.

The first thing I learned is that we really like being us and doing what we do. All over the world, I heard the same thing, again and again, in country after country: people with an enormous, almost surprising level of passion for doing their work the best way possible and being immensely proud of their contribution to the world.

That started early, in Mumbai, India, in March, where our chapter members and young engineers were, frankly, all over it — proud, organized and eager to show me everything they were building, from greater student outreach to the way they’re pulling operators into the fold. Their enthusiasm for the next generation of this industry stays with you.

A few weeks later, I was in Aberdeen for our North Sea Chapter’s annual Safety Awards, and it was a very different atmosphere. Our members there are working against real political headwinds, a government that isn’t friendly to our industry and a public conversation full of misinformation. They didn’t want sympathy. They already know the value of the work they do every day. They just wanted someone to stand up and say it plainly. We spent the evening celebrating the things we do best and recognizing those who go above and beyond in our business to make it all happen safely. It was a wonderful and uplifting event.

That same month, our Mexico City networking event drew a fantastic turnout, and it was a reminder of what this association does best: bringing people together. You could see it in the room. Old colleagues catching up. New connections being made. That kind of connection is something no report can capture, and it’s one of the best reasons I know to get involved in IADC.

If Mexico City showed me what happens when our people come together, our Brazil Chapter showed me what happens when they get to work. I first met with them in March, when they had a long list of challenges. By the time they visited IADC’s Houston headquarters during OTC in May, they had turned that list into actionable priorities, chipping away at them one by one, pulling in IADC resources and reporting progress back to their members.

I didn’t do that – they did. I was just the excuse to get everyone talking. But watching them do it in a matter of months was one of the most encouraging things I saw all year.

OTC was also a reminder that IADC doesn’t operate in a vacuum. Standing alongside colleagues from the Society of Petroleum Engineers, the American Association of Drilling Engineers and other trade organizations, sharing platforms and messages, made clear just how much further our reach goes when we work together. That lesson followed me to Colorado, where a rig visit and time with two other organizations – the Colorado Oil and Gas Association and the American Exploration and Production Council – reinforced the same point. A collective voice is a stronger voice, and we are always better as a team than as individual organizations.

That collective voice matters most when it comes to telling our story, and everywhere I went this year, I carried the same message. This industry has an enormous amount to be proud of, but we have not always been good at telling people about it. The advocacy videos from IADC’s industry messaging campaign were a no-brainer, and they have landed well everywhere I’ve shown them.  I am really proud of the team for this effort and can’t wait to see the next installments.

Nobody needs to hear that message more than the next generation, and I got to spend time with them at IADC’s Young Professionals Summit in September. People don’t stay in this industry just for a paycheck. They stay because they believe in something bigger. My advice to the young professionals was simple: Say “yes” to the opportunity, even the uncomfortable one. You can always walk away later, but you can’t walk away from a door you never opened.

Truthfully, that advice isn’t just for young professionals. It’s what I’ve been asking of all of you since January. Say “yes” to a committee, a chapter meeting, a conference — something, anything. I promise you won’t regret it.

Looking back, what I found everywhere, from Mumbai to Aberdeen to Mexico City to Houston to Colorado, was an overwhelming amount of positive energy just waiting to be tapped into, and an industry full of people who are rightfully very proud of what they do.

As my term as IADC Chairman comes to a close, I can honestly say I have enjoyed every minute of this role. It has been rewarding beyond my expectations. So here’s my message to you: Stay proud and stay involved. What we do is essential to how the world runs, and it will matter more tomorrow than it does today. No one else is going to say it for us, so let’s keep saying it, loudly and often. It all starts with us, the drillers.

And for the record, I’m not really leaving. I intend to stay every bit as engaged with IADC as I’ve been this year. You may just see a little less of me as the keynote. DC