Head of Planning & Economics

Our client is currently is a leading North Sea operator recruiting for the position of Head of Planning & Economics based in Aberdeen. This is a senior position making a key contribution to the complexion of the business. 
 
Job Purpose
To lead the Planning & Economics function, providing strategic insight, economic analysis and integrated business planning to support Executive and Board decision-making and maximise sustainable business value.
 
The role is accountable for developing a clear and integrated view of the company's outlook, bringing together production, operational performance, investment, costs, commodity prices, fiscal assumptions and financial outcomes.
 
A critical element of the role is strong business storytelling, translating complex data and analysis into a clear and compelling narrative that explains where the business is heading, what has changed, why it matters, the choices available and the actions required.
 
Key Accountabilities
Business Planning & Performance

• Lead the quarterly forecasting and annual business and long-range planning processes, integrating operational, technical, commercial and financial assumptions.
• Translate company strategy into clear operational and financial plans, targets and performance measures.
• Establish a clear narrative connecting strategy, operational delivery, capital investment, cash generation and value creation.
• Identify and explain changes in outlook, distinguishing between underlying performance, external factors, changes in assumptions and management actions.
• Identify emerging risks and opportunities and the interventions available to improve business outcomes.

 
Economics & Value Optimisation

• Own the company's economic evaluation framework, methodologies, assumptions and governance.
• Lead economic evaluation of material investments, developments, asset opportunities and strategic decisions, using appropriate measures including NPV, IRR, breakeven, payback and sensitivity analysis.
• Provide independent challenge of business and investment cases and ensure decisions are supported by robust, transparent economics.
• Support portfolio optimisation and capital allocation, ensuring investment is prioritised towards the highest-value opportunities within the company's strategic and financial constraints.
• Ensure appropriate consideration of UK fiscal arrangements, commodity prices, operating performance, project risk and decommissioning obligations.

 
Scenario Planning & Strategic Decision Support

• Lead scenario and sensitivity analysis across key business drivers including commodity prices, production, capex, opex, project schedules, fiscal assumptions, inflation and foreign exchange.
• Assess the implications of alternative scenarios for production, cash generation, returns, liquidity and portfolio value.
• Support strategic, commercial and portfolio decisions, including acquisitions, divestments and other material opportunities.
• Work closely with Finance, Treasury, Tax, Commercial and technical teams to provide an integrated view of the implications of major business choices.

 
Executive & Board Storytelling

• Act as a trusted adviser to the CFO and wider Executive team on planning, economics, performance and value.
• Focal point for the information sharing with the representatives from our Shareholders.
• Own the narrative underpinning the Business Plan, forecasts and key economic assessments.
• Translate complex technical, operational and financial information into concise, insightful and decision-focused Executive and Board materials.
• Clearly articulate what is happening, what has changed, why it matters, what could happen next and what management should do about it.
• Use data and visualisation effectively to support the story, ensuring detail enhances rather than obscures the key message.
• Provide objective and constructive challenge where the evidence does not support the prevailing business narrative.

 
Planning Processes, Systems & Automation

• Develop and maintain fit-for-purpose, efficient and well-controlled planning and economics processes that are proportionate to the needs and scale of the business.
• Lead the continuous improvement and simplification of planning, forecasting and economic evaluation processes, eliminating unnecessary complexity and manual activity.
• Develop integrated and increasingly automated planning, modelling and reporting solutions, improving the speed, accuracy, consistency and transparency of information.
• Work with Finance, Digital and other functions to ensure appropriate integration of source data, economic models, planning systems and management reporting.
• Establish clear data ownership, governance, controls and audit trails, ensuring confidence in the integrity of planning and economic outputs.
• Leverage automation, analytics and AI where appropriate to reduce manual processing and allow the team to spend more time on insight, challenge, scenario analysis and decision support.
• Ensure systems and processes are scalable and adaptable, supporting the evolving requirements of the business without creating unnecessary administrative burden.

Leadership & Capability

• Lead, develop and motivate the Planning & Economics team, building strong economic, analytical, commercial and storytelling capability.
• Establish high standards for economic modelling, analysis, controls and assurance.
• Develop the team's ability to move beyond producing analysis to identifying the insights, implications and actions arising from it.
• Promote strong collaboration across Finance, Commercial, Subsurface, Operations, Projects and other functions.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, using standardisation, automation and fit-for-purpose technology to reduce time spent producing numbers and increase the team's capacity for analysis, insight and storytelling.

 
Core Skills & Competencies
1.Strategic Business Planning & Performance Management
 Ability to translate strategy into integrated plans and identify the key drivers, risks and interventions required to deliver them.
2.Economic Evaluation & Value Optimisation
 Deep expertise in upstream economics, investment appraisal, scenario analysis and portfolio value optimisation.
3.Commercial Acumen & Decision Support
 Strong judgement and understanding of how technical, operational, fiscal and financial variables interact to determine value and investment returns.
4.Strategic Communication & Storytelling
 Exceptional ability to transform complex analysis into clear, compelling narratives that enable senior stakeholders to understand the issue, its implications, available choices and recommended action.
5.Executive Stakeholder Management & Influencing
 Credibility and confidence to engage, influence and constructively challenge Executive, Board-level and Shareholder stakeholders.
6.Leadership & Capability Development
 Strong people leadership skills with the ability to build a high-performing, commercially focused and analytically strong team.
 
Experience & Qualifications

• Degree qualified in Economics, Finance, Business, Engineering, Mathematics Technical or another relevant discipline.
• Significant relevant experience within the upstream oil and gas industry, ideally including the UK Continental Shelf.
• Strong track record in business planning, economics, investment appraisal, commercial analysis, project maturation and portfolio management.
• Deep understanding of upstream economics and value drivers, including production, commodity prices, capex, opex, taxation and decommissioning.
• Strong economic modelling, scenario analysis and investment evaluation experience.
• Demonstrable experience of communicating complex analysis to Executive and Board-level audiences.
• Proven ability to develop clear business narratives from complex technical and financial information.
• Strong commercial judgement and experience working across multidisciplinary technical, operational, commercial and finance teams.
• Experience of UK upstream fiscal economics.
• Experience of acquisitions, divestments, reserves/resources economics and portfolio optimisation.

 


People are our business worldwide
 
Orion Group was founded in 1987 and is now one of the largest, independent, international recruitment companies. We have a network of 200 employees working from 24 offices, delivering a range of services – Talent Acquisition, Recruitment Outsourcing Services, Retained Search, Global Workforce Solutions, Completions & Commissioning and Materials Management – across 68 countries. As a global leader in workforce solutions, we recruit personnel across the Engineering & Technical, Office & Commercial, Scientific and Skilled Trades disciplines, for sectors including Oil & Gas, Life Science, Power & Utilities, Constructions & Infrastructure, Manufacturing and Renewables.