When Link formed in 1994, de-regulation was a key market driver of growth, mergers, and acquisitions. This is obviously no longer the case, yet greener energy is setting the stage for major growth and innovation in the energy industry.
1) The "back-to-the-basics" agenda at most energy facilities entails searching for cost reductions and performance improvements in an already lean environment, with workforces that are often less than motivated - - and with minimal capital investment. LINK is working with several energy companies to step back and re-assess the basics of the process infrastructure and the productivity and morale of the workforce. Are the processes efficient? Is there maximum utilization of technology, for example in one-time data entry, predictive maintenance, enterprise information sharing, etc. Do employees understand their role in the strategic plans, and did senior executives incorporat their perspectives? Can Sustainability Initiatives create a focus on efficiencies and shift the culture to one more conducive to future needs? And so on.
2) The economics of a large number of highly-leveraged energy facilities have changed, resulting in costs and revenues out of sync with their pro formas. Uncertainty about the future demand as well as fuel costs make decisions difficult. While many owners are considering the sale of these distressed assets, buyers are not yet seeing fire-sale prices. LINK's role in this environment is to assist clients in assessing the operational, process, and people risks versus the opportunities inherent in particular facilities. LINK can act in an advisory role, or can assume full accountability for the desired outcomes. For example, in some cases owners and buyers have not considered all options for improved performance or reduced costs. In addition to the basic approaches relating to more efficient staffing, process optimization, supply chain management, and so forth, we find that there are also sometimes more innovative opportunities such as:
3) An alternative for some clients who are having difficulty enacting positive change in their organization is to outsource their operations and maintenance to a third party such as Link. A "new" operator is often inherently in a better position to leverage improved relationships with vendors, employees, and other stakeholders. In such a role, LINK would develop its Transition Plan focused on achievement of the client's objectives, and would base its compensation on achievement of Key Performance Indicators.