2. 8 • M O M E N T U M
The Bauer College of Business at the
University of Houston is ranked as one of the
top business schools in the US and among the
top 60 worldwide, with the Stephen Stanger
Sales Excellence Institute undergraduate
program offering the highest enrollment and
most extensive curriculum. It makes sense
that Schlumberger would view this as an
opportunity, and a 2012 partnership between
the two generated the first sales interns in the
company that summer. Partnership with the
Institute has provided additional insight and
opportunity to select students who will excel
in Schlumberger.
Sales Partnership
Program
The Sales Excellence Institute launched in 2004, but The Program for Excellence in
Selling has been in existence since 1996. With over 180 hours of sales training in the
program, the students do more than sit in a classroom. They must apply those skills
each semester by selling spots and sponsorships for the golf tournament in their first
semester; in the second semester they sell booths and sponsorships to the Sales
Career Fair. Students also learn a customer relationship management software,
which can easily be translated to the sales tools Schlumberger uses.
Sarah Perez is the project supervisor who coordinates and manages the sales
internship program with the university. Although she has field experience with
Wireline, Sarah does not believe that it is necessary someone has to come from the
field or be technical in order to be a successful salesperson. In order to test this belief,
candidates performed an internship to see how well they performed before offering
them a job. The process was successful and set the pattern for future potential hires.
Now, instead of offering candidates internships after graduating, Sarah is looking for
candidates who will graduate in the next year to do a summer internship.
Key Accounts is a term referring to both a course and the top 20% of students in the
class. These students teamed up with interested candidates and provided a case study
from a Segment that they use as a guide to “sell” a technology to a panel of
“customers,” who are Schlumberger employees. This interaction provides the panel
the opportunity to assess a candidate’s potential to learn the technology and see how
well they work in a team, their ethics, and their ability to sell. The benefits of this
competition are twofold – first, it provides students with a real-world situation where
they can get feedback valuable for their future careers; second, based on the outcome
of the competition, interviews are then scheduled with candidates.
Like any new hire, student interns from the program attend Schlumberger’s orientation
and the five-day sales course. Once the training is complete, interns work on a project
for a Segment that offers some benefit to Schlumberger. During this time, interns are
not selling, but managers are assessing their ability to sell. The success of the project
they complete is a huge determining factor, but not the only one. The candidate’s
ability to work as part of a team and how they fit with the Segment are also factors.
Near the end of the internship, students attend a presentation skills course to aid in
presenting their project to management. After an internship, not every person is hired;
jobs are offered only to those who are the best fit for Schlumberger.
“I am extremely excited to learn about the company,
their way of doing business, and the industry as a
whole. Getting the opportunity to work for a
Segment of Schlumberger has long been a dream
and goal of mine.” – Andrew Long, M-I SWACO
Sales Intern
The summer sales
interns, left to right,
Dahn Tran;
Laurabeth Barker;
Erica Renaud;
Kiran Meghani;
Daniella Leon;
Caroline Dubose;
Aman Khusro; and
Andrew Long.
3. M O M E N T U M • 9
My transition from the Program for Excellence in Selling (PES) to
Schlumberger is a fairly unique and lucky journey. I first learned
of PES my junior year at the University of Houston.
A friend of mine would not stop talking about wanting to join, and, since we were taking the
prerequisite together, she encouraged me to apply. At first, I was hesitant because when
I thought of sales, the image of a used car salesman came to mind; the one that tells you
which overpriced car you should get and will not let you leave the lot if you reject it. My
friend assured me that I had the wrong idea. Her enthusiasm about the program encouraged
me to apply. After making it through the application process, which included an essay, a
questionnaire, a copy of my resume, and an intense interview, I received my acceptance.
Over the course of my two semesters in the program, the curriculum was challenging but
rewarding. Not only did I receive classroom training, I also obtained live sales training.
During the first semester I sold players and sponsorship for the PES biannual golf
tournament, and I was able to surpass my quota by 188%. Approaching the second
semester, I knew that I wanted to be more involved in the program, so I applied and
was selected to be a team leader. I managed a team of six classmates and together we
received several accolades throughout the semester. By the end of the semester, I sold
400% above my quota and lead my team to win the award of Top Team.
It was also during my second semester that I interviewed with Schlumberger, which is a
corporate partner of PES. I was accepted into the internship program the summer following
my graduation, and was placed with M-I SWACO. During that time, my tasks included
calculating market share for North America Land and spearheading the adoption of the
database used to track all of the information from the field. I was given complete autonomy
in the collating, organizing, and presenting all of my findings and solutions. I had never
worked harder, because I knew there was an opportunity for a full-time job offer after the
summer. There was neither a door left un-knocked, nor a stone left unturned. With the help
and support of everyone I interacted with over the summer, my determination and hard work
paid off with an offer of full-time employment.
As a full-time employee, I began my training to become a city sales representative for
M-I SWACO. Training included both classroom and on-the-job experiences. Not only did I
attended several technical schools (including mud school), I also spent time out in the field.
These experiences prepared me for selling and provided me with the confidence to explain
how M-I SWACO technologies fit into the drilling operation.
Currently, I work with the Purification Solutions team selling fixed bed scavengers for
H2S and mercury. This dynamic team teaches me something new every day. I am grateful
to work for Schlumberger, and I look forward to contributing to our future success.
SALES
"To be successful in sales, we look for
energetic, positive, motivated, and flexible
employees. We can provide training for
our technical topics, but possessing these
soft skills is key to developing strong
customer relationships that add value to
the customer and M-I SWACO. Jennifer
is on a fast learning curve, but is already
contributing to our sales results and she
is helping us understand how to develop
future sales representatives from different
talent pools than we have historically
drawn from." – Patrick Thompson
“Even though it has not been more than a
week, my experience with Schlumberger
has already been phenomenal. My
fellow interns are a fun bunch and the
instructors have been nothing short of
amazing. Not only have I gleaned a
deeper insight into the industry, but
I have also learned advanced sales
processes unique to Schlumberger’s
Segments. I am looking forward to
leaving a positive impact at M-I SWACO,
where I will be for the remainder of the
summer.”– Aman Khusro, M-I SWACO
Sales Intern
Transitioning into Sales
By Jennifer Perez, Sales Representative
M O M E N T U M • 9
Jennifer Perez is an M-I SWACO sales representative
who interned with Environmental Solutions and Dynamic
Pressure Management. During her internship she
calculated market share, updated the database to track
equipment, created an inventory tracking form to capture
competitors’ market share, established a centralized
process to continue commitment to understanding
market share, and presented these deliverables to upper
management at the end of the summer. Patrick Thompson,
Sales VP, believes she was an excellent hire.
The current state of the industry makes hiring from
a single university an ideal arrangement. For the
anticipated upturn and eventual demand for additional
qualified sales people, Sarah met with other universities
that have well-renowned sales programs—Kansas
State, Florida State, Ohio University, and the University
of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. The anticipation is that hiring
from universities will become an international endeavor
in the search for the best candidates.
Hiring professionals from a program dedicated to the art
of sales will be a major component of creating lasting
customer relationships and securing Schlumberger’s
future as an industry leader. Sarah is committed to
finding the best people to help Segments fill sales
positions and make the partnerships with the University
of Houston and possible other universities successful.
