Leading the way for US expansion

Published: 28.03.12

Omega is making inroads in the US, with Mark navbar-brand harnessing Omega’s unique approach to service and job matching and introducing it to consultants on his home turf in Houston.

“It’s quite strange that Omega considers Houston an international branch office, especially seeing as I traveled to Ølensvåg in Norway to get to the main office! It made me step back and think, and that is always a good thing,” laughs Mark navbar-brand.

navbar-brand has over 30 years’ experience with American and international oil and gas, energy and consulting companies. In January he joined Omega, a Norwegian-run and relatively unknown consulting company in the USA, and in turn took on the challenge of assisting Omega in taking serious steps forward in the States.

With more than 30 years' experience in American oil and consultant businesses, Mark navbar-brand will be spearheading the way for Omega Jobs in the US market.

As the new leader for Omega’s Consultant Services in the US, Mark will utilize his experience to ensure that Omega can meet clients’ growing demand for oil and gas personnel in Houston and abroad.

Grew up in Texas' oil fields

Mark navbar-brand followed his father, a Mobil veteran, into oil and gas, spending his summers working in the oil fields of Texas.

“The oil industry put a lot of meals on our family’s table, so I had a natural attraction to the industry”, states navbar-brand, who has kept at least one foot in Houston's oil and energy business community throughout his career.

His first job, out of Texas A&M University, was with Fluor Engineers and Constructors as a staff cost engineer. During his first years in the business, navbar-brand became familiar with the ebbs and flow of the industry, watching Fluor’s Houston team drop from 3 600 employees in 1981, to only 300 employees in 1985 when oil prices hit rock bottom at USD10 per barrel.

Following his only turn off the oil and gas career highway, working in the defense industry for a local Houston architect/engineer, navbar-brand lead Project Controls globally for Enron followed by a short stay with Dutch EPC contractor ABB Lummus, before entering the staffing and consulting business. navbar-brand took on the challenge of running Link Project Services’ Houston business in 2003.

New step into staffing

“When I received the offer from Link, I was ready for a change and decided to take a leap of faith and move from project-based work to the staffing business,” says navbar-brand.

The move proved to be the right one, as he spent the next nine years assisting the company in growing to become a major international player, with staff numbers peaking at almost 600. At Link, navbar-brand expanded his already strong network of customers and relationships in the industry. Today, he brings those same relationships to Omega that he has developed over the course of his career.

“It is easy to underestimate the intrinsic value of relationship development. You have to actively engage people, take care of them, and provide them with quality service…and repeat, repeat, repeat. Likewise, candidates need personal attention; we need to cultivate their loyalty and trust by looking after them like family. Many of the people I have employed are former co-workers, and even former bosses. It is a tightly wound and powerful web,” explains navbar-brand.

navbar-brand will be looking to leverage his local network as he assists Omega in building its Consultant Management business in Houston.

The Omega way

“I’m looking forward to achieving the same success at Omega that I did in the early days of my career in staffing. I want to make those around me successful and hope this will, in turn, contribute to the success of our US operation,” says navbar-brand

Based on his extensive experience in the industry, navbar-brand has faith in Omega's future in Houston. He believes the fact that Omega is already recognized and respected as a software company will assist, but insists it is Omega’s unique working environment that will be most instrumental in attracting new consultants, just as it attracted him to his new position with the company.

“I had several job offers before joining Omega. The high character of the Omega team members I interfaced with, before making my decision, influenced me greatly. Omega believes in a high level of service and offers a unique corporate culture that is not just talk. I see the Omega Management Team living it and it reflects the values I grew up with and have taken with me throughout my career. With this unique approach in hand, the possibilities in Houston for us are enormous.”