Andrew Gould Biography Quotes 7 Report mistakes

Early life and education
Andrew Gould, a British business leader born in 1946, built a career that linked rigorous financial discipline with a deep understanding of oilfield technology and global operations. He studied economic history at the University of Wales, Cardiff, an unconventional path for an engineer-heavy industry that later became one of his strengths: he viewed technology through the lens of markets, cycles, and organizational capability. Early training in accounting and finance gave him a grounding in cost control, investment appraisal, and performance management that would anchor his approach to leadership in complex, capital-intensive businesses.

Early career
After beginning in finance-oriented roles, Gould joined Schlumberger in 1975. The company's culture of mobility and meritocracy placed him in assignments across Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America, where he worked at the intersection of finance, operations, and client service. Those formative years built his familiarity with the practical realities of oilfield services: safety-critical field work, demanding customers, volatile commodity prices, and the importance of continuous technology improvement. He became known for blending numbers-driven analysis with direct engagement in the field, an approach that earned him increasing responsibility.

Rise at Schlumberger
By the late 1990s, Gould had taken on senior leadership roles that combined regional management with segment oversight. He served as president of Schlumberger Oilfield Services, the company's core business, where he worked closely with technology leaders and operating managers to improve execution, margin discipline, and customer partnerships. During this period he helped shape the company's portfolio, including seismic and subsurface imaging via the WesternGeco venture, which broadened Schlumberger's capabilities from wellsite services into geophysics and reservoir characterization. His predecessor as group chief executive, Euan Baird, emphasized technology leadership and global reach; Gould would inherit and intensify those priorities.

Chief executive of Schlumberger
In 2003, Gould succeeded Euan Baird as chief executive officer of Schlumberger. His tenure coincided with a historic upcycle in oil and gas activity, a sharp downturn after the 2008 financial crisis, and a rapid rebound that tested capital allocation and operating resilience. Gould drove a program of portfolio strengthening and integration. Strategic moves included the acquisition of Smith International in 2010, which brought drilling and drilling fluids expertise (including the MI SWACO joint venture) into Schlumberger's suite of services, and the purchase of Geoservices, enhancing mud logging and surface data capabilities. Under his leadership Schlumberger also consolidated full ownership of WesternGeco, reinforcing the company's position in seismic imaging.

These steps reflected a consistent thesis: combine subsurface insight, well construction, and real-time data to deliver integrated solutions. Gould pushed investment in software and measurement-while-drilling technologies, along with safety and training systems that supported a large, globally mobile workforce. He worked with national oil companies and international majors alike, navigating diverse regulatory and operating environments while insisting on operational standards that could scale. When the 2008 crisis struck, he prioritized cash discipline and selective investment, aiming to emerge stronger as activity recovered.

Gould's years as CEO were also marked by careful succession planning. In 2011 he handed the chief executive role to Paal Kibsgaard, by then a senior operations executive, signaling continuity in the company's technology-led strategy.

Chairman of BG Group
After retiring from day-to-day management at Schlumberger in 2011, Gould became chairman of BG Group in 2012. BG Group, a leading LNG and E&P company, faced strategic inflection points in project delivery and portfolio focus. Gould worked with chief executive Chris Finlayson on operational priorities, and when Finlayson stepped down in 2014, Gould served as executive chairman on an interim basis to stabilize oversight during a leadership transition. That search culminated in the appointment of Helge Lund, known for his prior leadership of Statoil, as BG's CEO.

In 2015, amid low oil prices and industry consolidation, Royal Dutch Shell, led by Ben van Beurden, agreed to acquire BG Group in a landmark transaction. As BG's chairman, Gould played a central role in board deliberations and shareholder engagement around the deal, framing it as a path to scale in LNG and deepwater while providing certainty to investors through a premium offer. The combination closed in 2016, reshaping the global energy landscape and concluding BG's chapter as an independent company.

Advisory and governance roles
Gould's experience made him a sought-after voice on boards and in advisory settings, particularly on topics of technology adoption, capital discipline, and safety culture in high-hazard industries. He engaged with executive teams on how to align research and engineering agendas with field execution, and how to sustain performance through commodity cycles. His boardwork emphasized transparency with investors and the practicalities of delivering complex projects across jurisdictions.

Leadership style and legacy
Colleagues often described Gould as analytical, calm under pressure, and precise about operational details without losing strategic perspective. He encouraged data-driven decision-making and insisted that technology investments be tied to measurable improvements in well construction, reservoir understanding, and life-cycle economics. The acquisitions and integrations he stewarded at Schlumberger aimed to make the company more than a collection of product lines; his objective was a cohesive platform able to plan, drill, and produce more efficiently for customers.

His relationships with senior industry figures illuminate the network around him. He followed Euan Baird at Schlumberger and prepared the ground for Paal Kibsgaard to succeed him, reinforcing continuity in a technology-first culture. At BG Group he worked closely with Chris Finlayson during a period of operational challenge, then partnered with Helge Lund to reset strategy before recommending the combination with Shell under Ben van Beurden. Those collaborations, across different companies and phases of the cycle, illustrate his role as a connector of people, technology, and capital.

Personal and outlook
Gould kept his personal life largely private, preferring to let results and institutions speak for themselves. Professionally, he moved comfortably between field locations, boardrooms, and investor forums, reflecting a career spent bridging engineering realities and financial expectations. His legacy rests on durable contributions: a stronger, more integrated Schlumberger; a steady hand that guided BG Group through leadership transition and industry consolidation; and a management philosophy that married technological ambition with operational discipline.

Our collection contains 7 quotes who is written by Andrew, under the main topics: Science - Business - Money.