From Sr. Reservoir Engineer to Employee #3 at FinTech Startup

Reed Stiles explains his transition from Senior Reservoir Engineer at ConocoPhillips to first engineer and partner at a financial technology startup in Houston.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reedstiles

You should walk away from this podcast with:
1. A clear understanding between my personal and unique experiences at large corporate jobs and a technology startup business
2. Some pros and cons that you might not think about when considering jobs at both a large corporation and a small startup
3. A few key points that not enough people discuss
- complexities and vulnerabilities of employment contracts, confidentiality / non-compete NDAs, and Equity award agreements
- Founder specializations and overlapping skills
- The fantasizing of startup “grind” lifestyle

Episode Breakdown
It should motivate people to consider that there's no perfect career solution and the grass ISN'T always greener on the other side (thought it can be).

Reed compares the compelling pros and cons surrounding his personal experience in both a large Exploration & Production (E&P) company in Houston and a financial technology (FinTech) startup in Houston.

ConocoPhillips (Large corporate firm) Notes
- Clear job growth opportunities present in many different groups, locations, and assets
- HR & systems for onboarding processes take care of benefits, setup, and behind the scenes processes and programs(that I took for granted until the startup)
- Mentorship - formal mentors provided and thousands of employees available to meet and with which to work directly
- Early career development / foundational development - online training, mentorship, curriculum for specific professions, subject matter experts on staff, and many other formal ways to develop
- Stable business environment - not a ton of pivoting at your individual job - your individual contributions and expectations are often stable. This often to leads to a stable work schedule and manageable work-life balance
- Health benefits, Retirement, Pensions, stock bonuses - defined pay, benefits, and “extras” that are often not available in the early stage startups
- International and relocation assignment potential - many offices, many jobs, and many assets allow for relocation and job growth around the nation or world
- Big capital projects - large corporations are often the ones most capable to execute and manage the largest projects in the world. It’s a great experience to work on these massive projects.
- Pedigree and prestige - many large firms carry “brand name recognition” and “experience recognition” when seeking new jobs or opportunities
- Amazing networking - so many young engineers I worked with have moved on to other things and are some of my best friends today
- Managers & supervisors / goal-setting / micro-managing - can be good and bad. It’s easy to think of management as an unnecessary money pit. I personally didn’t have that experience with frontline supervisors - they were many of the most influential people in my career and education.

EnergyFunders (Early stage firm) Notes
- IMPORTANT: It’s okay to fail. It’s okay to win big. It’s okay to try something new. Your mileage may vary. If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far, it's that most things in life aren’t as bad or as good as they appear. It’s most likely in between the worst and best cases.
- Work Life flexibility - many technology firms are web-based and allow for flexibility in your work schedule and working location
- You work 24/7 often (gross versus net hours) - you MUST do whatever it takes to win.. If you don’t complete something, then it won’t be finished. This leads to being “plugged in” to your job at all times and having the ability to work remotely at all times
- Blank slate / sandbox - you can do anything or nothing. It can be both liberating and daunting to prioritize work on a project that is brand new without examples or templates. It’s hard to “factory farm” creativity and innovation.
- Small teams - not much job redundancy. You must get scrappy and innovative to find mentorship, resources, answers to impossible questions, and software tools.
- Small network - not as much mentorship. Requires self-motivation, self-discovery, and networking to find help outside of your small team.
- Employment contracts and stock award offers ... this part blows. These contracts include many important clauses and intricate details that can screw you over. SPEND AN ANNOYING AMOUNT OF TIME REVIEWING THESE DOCUMENTS. Make sure a startup attorney or employment attorney reviews this. Email me (Reed@ExOilfield.com for my referral in Houston).
- In the beginning - Limited benefits. Low salary. No guarantee of employment.
- You can become “Unemployable” - if you want to move into a more “rigid” / “corporate” job after startup life, it can be challenging to sell yourself and brand your experience versus standard / cookie-cutter jobs.
- You can learn so many new skills and wear many hats. It's super cool to work on and be involved with many aspects of a company.
- Founder skill diversification - you need to cover major basis (operations, technology, product, finance, and accounting), be cautious of overlapping skillsets. Your founders are critical labor in the beginning

Do you know someone that would be a great interview for the podcast? Email Reed@ExOilfield.com
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