SPE eMentoring Stories

Kai C. Eberspaecher, Senior Associate, Mentor

 

Image of Kai C. Eberspaecher

My main motivation as a mentor is to give back to others joining this great and fascinating industry. I have had some very good mentors in my time, and I would like to share career and development advice with others as well.

My mentee, Fábio, and I got in touch once or twice a month through email, or we would meet in person for a coffee.

Fábio and I were a good connection and fit. I always find that there is something that the mentor and mentee can learn from each other.

I enjoyed learning new things from Fábio regarding what he was focused on in his PhD studies and also his cultural heritage. Fábio also shared some of his perspectives on corporate culture and sustainable development.

Fábio and I spoke about how the university was a good opportunity to learn broadly about a range of topics that relate to petroleum engineering. Specifically, we spoke about the importance of understanding how commercial and economic factors ultimately influence corporate decision making. That struck a chord with Fábio, and he took some time out to attend a petroleum economics class at his school.

My advice to potential mentors is to be open to make new connections, learn new things from your mentee, and find common ground. If you can, meet face-to-face, or use modern technology to establish a relationship.

Biography

Kai Eberspaecher is a senior associate with Advisian. He has 20 years of experience in production engineering, project management, front-end development and consulting.

Eberspaecher earned his masters in chemical engineering from Imperial College London, and an MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.