I have been working at GDI, as Chief Operating Officer (COO), since April 2006.

I joined JDC, Japan Drilling Co. in 1978, after graduating from university with BSc degree from Waseda University, Tokyo. I have worked on JDC rigs in Japan, Russia, China, Egypt, and Indonesia as drilling crew. I then had an opportunity to work in Research & Development area of drilling technology with JNOC (Japan National Oil Corporation, now called JOGMEC, Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation). I have also worked in the Engineering and Business Departments of JDC where I gained experience in technical and contractual aspects of drilling services. I was transferred to Mexico for managing one of JDC’s semi-submersible rigs in 2003, and joined GDI in 2006 as the COO (a JDC Secondee).

I am taking care of four functions, namely onshore operations, offshore operations, maintenance and engineering.

My typical day starts with reviewing daily operations (onshore and offshore) and providing necessary instructions to operations managers. This is followed by reviewing reports and documents submitted for my action or approval. This includes approvals for payments, procurement (thru the ERP), meetings to discuss and sort out challenges and outstanding issues to improve overall performance of GDI. In addition, I monitor statistics like downtime, safety, financial matters and KPI performance as part of my key responsibilities. I also support the marketing function, through responding to client letters and faxes, obtaining customer satisfaction reports are an important part of my daily "to do" list. Reviewing and developing policies and procedures are an integral part of my duties, as part of the company’s policy of continuous improvement. Regular updates are necessary to meet the challenges of industry and the constantly changing environment, in order to be an internationally recognized and company.

Understanding others and giving appropriate instructions which are easily understood for implementation. This is very important since we are a multi-national and multi-lingual company.

The opportunity we have to expand our business in Qatar and GCC.

Energetic discussions I have with other colleagues from different nationalities, although it can be very challenging at times.

We have had improved communication between departments. Everybody is getting to know each other better now.

Life is full of challenges and changes, which drives our energy and motivation to press ahead at both, professional and personal levels.

Many companies have come to know what GDI is and what its core business is. A company’s reputation is a measure of its safety record and performance. GDI’s image is getting stronger and better due to constant improvements in performance, although we need to put in more effort,

10. What are the most important characteristics and aspects of GDI that your department tries to convey through their work?

Better communication with other departments in order to have stronger, more robust and appropriate support from them. Many of our office staff still have difficulty in understanding how we work and how we make money through our business.

I like the fact that it is a very quiet city to live in, with excellent security and safety records. I dislike the fact that there are many traffic accidents occurring every day, and I miss the abundance of greenery and rain.