Managing Partner – Sector Advisory — Upstream Portfolio

The mandate

An Indian advisory partnership has assembled strong upstream specialists, but client ownership, delivery leverage and partner economics remain uneven. Clients now face difficult transition-investment decisions across mature production, gas, emissions reduction, decommissioning and adjacent energy options. The council wants a Managing Partner who can create a sector franchise whose advice integrates capital, operations and transition evidence rather than selling disconnected technical workstreams.

The client-value perimeter is approximately ₹37,800 crore in operated assets and portfolio interests, supported by 1,525 employees and material partners. Accountability includes sector strategy, priority clients, engagement acceptance, proposition development, partner performance, economics, quality, alliances and talent. Engagement leaders retain professional conclusions. The Managing Partner owns the franchise promise, senior client relationships and whether partner contribution exceeds personal billing.

Transition advice in upstream carries conflicts and competence boundaries. A client may ask whether to decarbonise, divest, repurpose or close an asset; each route affects reserves, integrity, communities, capital and liabilities. The practice must assemble the right disciplines and state what it cannot conclude.

The sector model will be judged on repeatable client decisions and healthy economics, not the number of specialists attached to an account.

Why this seat is open

The previous Managing Partner is leaving through an accelerated but orderly transition. Interim partners protect engagements, but the transition-investment agenda needs permanent authority within six to eight weeks. The departure is unrelated to a concealed client, quality or conduct matter. Conflict and relationship transfer will be handled professionally.

What you will own

• Define priority upstream decisions and the propositions serving them.
• Establish account ownership, partner contribution and conflicts governance.
• Integrate technical, commercial, capital and transition advice.
• Improve leverage, delivery quality and engagement economics.
• Build reusable insight without exposing client information.
• Develop sector partners and transferable board relationships.

Client segmentation will begin with decision need. National and private producers, investors, service companies and authorities require different support across portfolio, development, operations, decommissioning and transition. Account plans will identify the board issue, right to advise, relevant evidence, relationship coverage and conflict position. Senior access alone will not qualify a pipeline.

Propositions will state the client decision changed, disciplines required and professional boundary. An asset-transition proposition might combine operating emissions, integrity, economics, regulation and transaction options, but it cannot collapse engineering assurance into a strategy opinion. Methods will make evidence comparable while allowing geology, asset condition and contracts to remain specific.

Engagement acceptance will test authority, information, timetable and implementation access. The Managing Partner will decline outcome promises where client control or data is insufficient. Conflicts among asset owners, bidders, regulators, lenders or partners will be cleared before teams receive sensitive information. Independence will not be negotiated after revenue becomes likely.

Partner economics will reward origination, quality, delivery, collaboration and succession. Credit will transfer when another partner becomes a trusted relationship owner. The council will challenge engagements staffed with excessive seniority because historic incentives reward personal hours. Leverage must remain appropriate to consequence and supervision.

The franchise will capture anonymised decision patterns, data requirements and lessons rather than client answers. Alliances may extend engineering, technology or market capability, but need contribution, quality, confidentiality and exit terms. The practice remains accountable for the advice carrying its name.

Talent development will join sector depth with advisory judgement. Managers and directors will spend time with assets, transaction teams and client executives, learning how technical evidence becomes a board choice. Promotion will recognise quality, collaboration and client transfer as well as sales. Specialist careers will remain viable so expertise is not lost through forced movement into general relationship roles.

The first 12 months

Within 90 days, the Managing Partner will review the 20 largest clients and engagements, map concentration and assess partner economics. The council will receive pursue, reshape, transfer and stop choices plus a defined transition-investment proposition.

By month eight, five priority accounts should have multi-partner coverage, two unrelated clients should adopt the integrated proposition and low-quality pipeline should fall materially. Revised economics will reward delivery and relationship transfer.

At year-end, qualified pipeline should exceed twice the following-year plan, contribution remain within 10% of forecast and 90% of high-risk quality actions close on time. No preventable conflict breach is acceptable, while 70% of priority client relationships have a credible successor partner.

What the board will measure

• Advice that changes real upstream transition-investment decisions.
• Professional boundaries and conflicts protected under pressure.
• Healthy partner economics beyond individual rainmakers.
• Repeatable methods grounded in asset-specific evidence.
• Strong sector talent and relationship succession.

The person

You are a Managing Partner, upstream practice leader or senior energy adviser with more than 28 years of experience. You have carried client-value scope above ₹21,900 crore and led at least 1,075 people. Your record includes upstream operating, capital or transition choices receiving board scrutiny.

The council will examine advice that stopped a transition investment, a relationship transferred to another partner and a multidisciplinary engagement where you protected professional boundaries. You must bring trusted client access while proving institutional value. Pure technical consulting or personal origination without practice leadership will not qualify.

This onsite Vadodara appointment requires extensive client, asset and regional travel.

Compensation and terms

Fixed compensation is ₹5.0–7.5 crore plus performance variable and LTI. Measures include client decisions, contribution, quality, partner leverage, relationships and succession. Long-term terms follow partnership governance and final scope.

Confidentiality

The advisory firm, clients, assets, partners and transition choices remain confidential. Further details follow reciprocal interest and an undertaking. Composite context prevents identification of any named practice or client.