Weatherford International plc has named Karl Blanchard as executive vice president and chief operating officer.
Blanchard, who has spent more than 35 years in the oilfield services sector, will oversee Weatherford's region and product line operations; quality, health, safety, security and environment; sales; engineering, research and development; and supply chain.
Most recently, Blanchard served as chief operating officer for Seventy Seven Energy, where he oversaw drilling, pressure-pumping and rental tool operations. Previously, he worked at Halliburton Co for more than 30 years where he held a number of senior leadership positions including vice president of Cementing, vice president of Production Enhancement and vice president of Testing and Subsea.
“Mr Blanchard has a long track record of bringing teams together to deliver operational excellence, strong financial performance and disciplined growth,” said Mark McCollum, president and CEO of Weatherford. “I have witnessed the effectiveness of his leadership first-hand, and I am very much looking forward to working with him to create a more balanced and integrated organizational structure at Weatherford.” McCollum joined Weatherford earlier this year and previously served as chief financial officer of Halliburton.
“By aligning several elements of our business under Mr Blanchard’s direction, we will establish greater collaboration, innovation and process discipline across our organization,” said McCollum.
