Back to top
Back to Newsletter List










JVViews: January 2014 Issue


Editor's Note

Luncheon Director's Note

Feature Article: Trust the Pie by Dr. Gary Lepine

Upcoming Events

PASC Education: Introduction to the 2011 Accounting Procedure

PJVA's 15th Christmas Social Summary

Petroleum Joint Venture Extension Certificates

eStudies and Web Based Learning - The JV Analyst I course is now online!

Looking for a New Opportunity?

PJVA LinkedIn® Group





Editor's Note

A Note from the Editor... Setting goals

The New Year has arrived and typically it's a time when we're motivated to set new goals, both personally and professionally, for the coming year. Many of us are going through the review process with our employers and having to set 2014 career goals that will stretch us as individuals and as employees within the overall corporate plan.

Setting goals seems to be one of the most difficult skill sets for people to develop, myself included. Whether it's personal or professional goals we are setting, studies show that writing down the goal makes it real and tangible. Following the SMART guidelines will help achieve success.

Specific - be clear with your goal - what do you want the outcome to be
Measurable - the goal needs to be measurable - what does success look like
Attainable - the goal should be realistic, achievable but challenging
Relevant - the goal should be relevant for you and aligned to where you want to go
Timely - there must be a deadline, knowing when success is achieved

Once the goal is clearly defined, do an action plan. Write down what needs to be done to accomplish your goal. Stop and review your progress often - is the plan working or is there something that needs to change. Reward yourself along the way for the small steps achieved and remember how good it will feel when your goal is realized!

Don't wait to start next Monday - start your vision today.

Wishing us all success in the coming year.

Joan Lee


Table of Contents

Luncheon Director's Note

Happy New Year Everyone!
As the New Year commences I am looking for membership input on the past year's luncheons as well as any ideas of topics or speakers you would like to see for the upcoming year.
Your input is important as the PJVA wants to offer a variety of luncheon presentations that are of interest to the most important aspect of our association - YOU!
We had a variety of topics since September when I took over; from legal, to software to technical. Here's your chance to voice your valued opinion!
  1. How did you find the past year's topics?
  2. What would you like to see in the future?
  3. Are there past luncheons you would like to see revisited?
  4. Do you know someone who is looking to present?
Your opinion matters! Please submit any questions, requests or comments to Richelle Lindsay at engage@pjva.ca.

I look forward to hearing from you!
Cheers to an exciting 2014!

Richelle Lindsay
Luncheon Director, PJVA



Table of Contents

Feature Article: Trust the Pie by Dr. Gary Lepine


Sometimes our approach to problem solving can stall. Many thanks to Dr. Gary Lepine of Concord Professional Development Inc. for allowing us to reprint his article Trust the Pie on why we should consider "switching gears" when a problem has us frustrated.

Trust the Pie by Dr. Gary Lepine

Problem solving or decision-making is a key element for strong teams, good leadership, and for creating a great place to work; but it can be tricky. There are plenty of methods to choose from and we each have our favourites. We can make a 'pros and cons' list or something similar. We gather information, do our research or a market analysis, talk to others, even throw darts at a board; all sorts of things to aid our moving forward. But sometimes we get stymied. We have information to work with, but we just cannot seem to make any headway or decide which course of action to take. These can be frustrating moments.

Some time ago I watched Men In Black III (I had already watched the first two and thought, 'why not?'). If you are not familiar with the movie series, it is about an organization that tracks and polices aliens who are living in disguise on earth. The two protagonists, agent K, played by Tommy Lee Jones, and agent J, played by Will Smith, chase aliens around the planet trying to figure out what the latest diabolic plot is. The movies are what they are and in the third installment there is an interesting piece of dialogue that I think is worth considering.

At a key point in the movie, an earlier in time version of K and current J are stuck. They have some clue about what is going on, but they cannot piece everything together. J is agitated and, feeling that time is of the essence, wants to do something. K on the other hand declares, "we need pie", and promptly heads off to his favourite diner much to the chagrin of J. It all seems like a waste of time but K explains, "my grand-daddy always said if you have a problem you can't solve, it helps to get out of your head." And as they are sitting there, eating pie, talking about whatever comes to mind, they of course stumble across the missing connections that help them to figure out what is going on. "Told you to trust the pie" jibes K.

You could chalk all of this up to a Hollywood script, but I think there is something about this that is of value. On more than one occasion I have found that when I am not making the progress I would like it helps to switch gears, do something different, move to some task that requires a different kind of thinking but gives me a chance to 'get out of my head'. It is not a given that it will always work, but it often does. Admittedly there really isn't a formula for this, but maybe that's the point; maybe part of thinking creatively or outside of the box means allowing for time to ponder things more slowly or more indirectly. And I am not sure there is a specific way to implement this into your situation, but perhaps bringing a pie into the occasional meeting might be worth a try.



Table of Contents

Upcoming Events

January Luncheon - January 23, 2014
Early Morning Discussion - January 29, 2014
February Mini Information Session - February 4, 2014
February Seminar: CO&O - February 6, 2014
February Luncheon - February 20, 2014
Land Agreements - April 29, 2014

To Register, please go to PJVA website: https://securegs.com/pjva/


Table of Contents

PASC Education: Introduction to the 2011 Accounting Procedure

View in your browser


For more informaiton and online registration, please visit PASC web site.



Table of Contents

PJVA's 15th Christmas Social Summary


November 27th was host to PJVA's 15th Annual Christmas Social. Over 180 members attended the association's most anticipated event of the year at the Petroleum Club. This year 12 bottles of PJVA labled wine were given out for door prizes. If you missed it this year, be sure to mark November 27th, 2014 (Thursday) in your calendar for next year!

Click here to view the photo gallery


Table of Contents

Petroleum Joint Venture Extension Certificates



For more informaiton and online registration, please click here.
E-mail: cescience@mtroyal.ca
Information: 403.440.6278
Location: Lincoln Park Campus, 4825 Mount Royal Gate SW


Table of Contents

eStudies and Web Based Learning

The JV Analyst I course is now online!

This course is designed to provide you with a solid understanding of the role of the Joint Venture Analyst and the responsibilities that accompany that role. Successful completion of this course is a good first step and will prepare you to enter a career in joint venture analysis, but it will not qualify you for a joint venture analyst position. This course is recommended to be used in combination with practical industry experience.

The course consists of the following 9 modules:
  • Introduction to Joint Venture Analyst
  • The Role and Responsibilities of the Joint Venture Analyst
  • Introduction to Petroleum Production and Agreements
  • Petroleum Production from Wellhead to Plant
  • Joint Venture Business Drivers
  • Risk Management
  • CO&O Analysis
  • Introduction to Contract Law
  • Land and Mineral Contracts
  • Royalties
  • Project Economics and Fees
  • Common Stream Operating and Marketing
Direct them to the PJVA eStudies home page to learn more!


Table of Contents

Looking for a New Opportunity?

Check out the PJVA Job Board for recent postings.


Table of Contents

PJVA LinkedIn® Group

PJVA is now on LinkedIn®, the world's largest professional network. It's a great way to stay connected and exchange ideas with other PJVA members and industry professionals.

Click here to join the discussion!


Table of Contents



PJVA was incorporated in 1985 to represent individuals and organizations involved in petroleum joint ventures. JVViews is published to keep members informed about upcoming PJVA and industry events, courses and seminars offered and/or sponsored by PJVA and current projects being facilitated by the Association.