Director, Global Enterprise & Rig Technology Operations

At H&P, our people are our strength.

Since 1920, Helmerich and Payne has been the industry’s most trusted partner in drilling productivity and reliability. As the world changes, so does our approach. We are changing the landscape of drilling by using cutting-edge rig technologies and drilling solutions to build upon a century of success, all while continuing to deliver better outcomes for our customers.

At H&P, our people are our strength. We strive to continually lead with our Core Values that enable employees to develop on their H&P Journey. We believe that doing the right thing means creating a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace that empowers our people to bring their authentic selves to work every day.

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Hear directly from our employees, and leaders about their unique journeys at Helmerich and Payne.

At a Glance:

The Director, Global Enterprise & Rig Technology Operations is responsible for the global operation, reliability, and security of the technology infrastructure that keeps H&P's rigs connected and the enterprise running. Leading teams across the Western and Eastern Hemispheres, the Director owns rig connectivity and network operations; datacenter, cloud, and hosting operations; rig technology platforms; infrastructure and network security operations. The role is accountable for meeting drilling-critical availability targets through global coverage, including a follow-the-sun model for appropriate functions, and will continue to integrate and standardize the combined H&P and KCA Deutag technology estate.

In doing so, the Director ensures Global IT delivers reliable, cost-efficient, secure, and scalable services that support rig automation execution, real-time rig data flow, uninterrupted drilling operations, employee productivity, and H&P's global growth.

Location: Tulsa Office

Work Type: Onsite

#LI-Onsite - Tulsa, OK

What you will do:

• Operating model: define and execute the operating model for enterprise and rig technology services, including service placement, role clarity, global handoffs, support coverage, and consistent standards across Tulsa, Aberdeen, India, field locations, datacenters, cloud, and rig environments.
• Direct global infrastructure and rig technology operations: own the day-to-day operation, availability, and performance of rig connectivity, networks, datacenters, cloud and hosting, and rig-site technology platforms across all hemispheres.
• Strategic infrastructure initiatives: lead infrastructure strategy and execution for major initiatives, including global operating model transformation, international rig infrastructure upgrades, NextGen Rig Network (NGRN) capabilities, space-based connectivity, and datacenter and cloud modernization, spanning FlexRig and T-Series rigs and all operating regions.
• Lead follow-the-sun operations: design and run 24x7 coverage across Tulsa (US / Western Hemisphere), Aberdeen (UK / Eastern Hemisphere), and India, including NOC rotation and third-shift coverage, ensuring seamless handoffs, on-call structures, and major-incident response for drilling-critical services.
• Rig connectivity and network operations: ensure rigs, offices, datacenters, and cloud are reliably and securely linked worldwide; oversee network engineering, rig and FlexRig networking, and connectivity for remote and offshore assets.
• Datacenter, cloud, and hosting operations: own core compute, storage, virtualization, backup, and cloud hosting (including Azure, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, and GCP) that underpin rig and enterprise services; drive resilience, capacity planning, and cost efficiency.
• Rig technology platforms: ensure the IT and technical platforms on the rigs, including edge and OT-adjacent systems, are reliable, secure, and support safe drilling; partner closely with Digital Drilling Solutions, Digital Operations, and field operations.
• Infrastructure and network security operations: keep the global network and infrastructure secure as well as available; partner closely with the CISO and Information Security on incident response, hardening, and controls, aligned with a shared follow-the-sun response model.
• Governance, risk, and compliance: partner with Cybersecurity and Governance, Risk & Compliance on identity and access dependencies, network segmentation, vulnerability remediation, change control, audit readiness, and regulatory obligations.
• Enterprise technology architecture: set infrastructure and platform architecture direction, standards, and governance; guide design decisions and technology selection in partnership with the principal architecture team.
• Major-incident leadership: serve as the primary infrastructure leader during major technology incidents and disruptions; translate technical issues into business impact, coordinate cross-functional response, engage executive stakeholders when warranted, and ensure corrective actions and lessons learned are implemented.
• Operational governance and resilience: own major-incident, problem management, and disaster-recovery readiness for infrastructure and rig technology; drive continuous improvement and reliability engineering.
• Project and change governance: sponsor, approve, and govern infrastructure projects and enterprise change requests, ensuring business case, scope, funding, resourcing, vendor selection, risk management, testing, acceptance criteria, and benefits realization are sufficient before and during execution.
• Executive communications: provide clear communications to IT and business leadership on infrastructure services, outages, risks, strategic tradeoffs, investment needs, and operational performance, using business language rather than unnecessary technical detail.
• Post-merger integration and standardization: continue to integrate, rationalize, and standardize the combined H&P and KCA Deutag infrastructure estate toward a single global operating model.
• MSP and vendor oversight: manage managed service providers and technology partners to defined SLAs and performance standards; partner with Supply Chain, who executes vendor negotiations and vendor management, providing the technical and performance requirements that inform sourcing and renewals.
• Strategic vendor engagement: engage strategic vendors and managed service providers at executive and account-leadership levels to resolve issues, improve performance, manage escalations, and align roadmaps, while Supply Chain continues to execute negotiations and vendor management.
• People leadership: lead, develop, and organize a global, multi-site team of managers and engineers across the Western and Eastern Hemispheres; build bench strength, on-call coverage, and succession.
• Leadership standards: set expectations for managers, principals, and technical leaders consistent with H&P's job-architecture levels (for example P4, M2, M3, and M4) and coach leaders to bring recommendations, not just issues, across project engagement, incident response, change control, budgeting, vendor management, and planning.
• Financial stewardship: partner with IT Business Operations on the infrastructure and platform budget, forecast, and savings, running the function with disciplined spend-to-value optimization.

What you will need:

• Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field preferred
• 15+ years of progressive infrastructure and operations experience, including significant leadership responsibility, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Advanced knowledge of enterprise infrastructure operations: networks, datacenter, cloud, virtualization, and hosting
• Advanced knowledge of cloud platforms (Azure, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, and/or GCP) and hybrid operations
• Knowledge of rig, drilling, or industrial / operational-technology (OT) environments strongly preferred
• Advanced knowledge of network and infrastructure security operations and incident response
• Advanced knowledge of IT service management, major incident, problem, and change management, disaster recovery, and business continuity
• Advanced knowledge of enterprise technology architecture, standards, and governance
• Demonstrated experience running 24x7, mission-critical operations to defined availability targets (follow-the-sun / NOC)
• Ability to sponsor and govern complex programs and projects, including business case, resourcing, vendor selection, risk mitigation, acceptance criteria, and benefits realization
• Experience partnering with Cybersecurity and Governance, Risk & Compliance on audit readiness and regulatory obligations
• Experience managing managed service providers (MSPs) and technology partners to SLAs, including executive escalation and roadmap alignment
• Proven leadership of large, geographically distributed technical teams
• Experience with post-merger technology integration preferred
• Financial acumen: infrastructure and platform budgeting, forecasting, and cost optimization (FinOps)
• Excellent executive communication, interpersonal, and stakeholder-management skills
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally, including to rig sites (passport required)

What we offer:

At H&P, our commitment to our people is at the forefront, and that includes benefits that provide employees a sense of health and financial security. We know that life continues outside of employment and actively caring of our people is our priority.

• Flexible Spending or Health Savings Accounts
• 401k match
• Paid Leave Plans
• Parental & Adoption Benefits
• Disability Coverage
• Employee Assistance Program
• Educational Assistance
• Learning & Development Opportunities
• Flex-scheduling available for qualifying positions to achieve work-life integration
• Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, and life insurance

The job level and associated compensation for this position will be determined based on the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and alignment with the role’s requirements. Final compensation for this role may vary depending on individual factors.

H&P is committed to employing a diverse workforce. Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or disability.

Thank you for your interest in joining our team!