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A New Energy
Bauer MBA Candidate Combines Geology Background with MBA Degree in Energy Industry
In the midst of a tumultuous year during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bryan Gottfried decided to pursue his MBA at the C. T. Bauer College of Business, focusing on the transitioning energy industry.
As world leaders and politicians focus on issues surrounding the global energy industry, the C. T. Bauer College of Business is preparing students to become professionals who can respond to the changing technologies and perspectives within the discipline.
Bauer MBA candidate Bryan Gottfried is a geoscientist who has structured his coursework to focus on the implications of the energy transition, including the potential of geothermal energy, the applications of Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS), and the role of hydrogen and other alternative fuels.
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After graduating from the college’s Professional MBA program this fall, Gottfried plans to explore a role that allows him to apply his broader understanding of the overall global energy industry that complements his experience in the oil and gas sector and allows him to provide comprehensive expertise in the technological and economic challenges and opportunities presented by the various solutions emerging in the diversifying energy industry.
I see myself as being somebody that can speak both languages. I speak the language of the traditional oil and gas industry, but I’m also very interested in these new technologies and I know a lot about them.
Bryan Gottfried,
MBA Candidate
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Bauer College Professional MBA Program →
Gutierrez Energy Management Institute →
“It’s exciting, and it can be intimidating because there’s so much going on in the industry and in the world,” Gottfried said. “There’s news everyday about what’s happening across the world in the energy transition.”
The issue is especially interesting for Gottfried, who has spent over 20 years working in upstream oil and gas, leveraging his background in geology to serve as an energy advisor, senior reservoir geologist and geoscientist for various organizations.
“My experience has been in the legacy energy industry,” he said. “I see myself as being somebody that can speak both languages. I speak the language of the traditional oil and gas industry, but I’m also very interested in these new technologies and I know a lot about them. And, having the MBA education that provides the commercial and fundamental business background, I can bridge that gap that brings us from the legacy industry to cleaner energy.”
Bauer College’s energy program was a natural fit for this goal, Gottfried said, highlighting a course the college offers called “The Energy Transition,” taught by Gutierrez Energy Management Institute director Greg Bean.
“The class was a great introduction to all of the issues I wanted to explore, but not only that, it allowed me to develop a relationship with Professor Bean that has given me a number of opportunities that I wouldn’t have had otherwise,” he said.
Some of those opportunities include working as a research assistant on a paper about the costs of transitioning to a carbon neutral net zero transportation future, along with participation in a number of case competitions, including the Houston Climathon, which he and his teammates won with a proposal for the development of a smart microgrid to support the Houston Climate Action Plan’s goals of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
“Right now, we are working on finding partners and stakeholders willing to be part of a resilient microgrid,” Gottfried said. “The storm we had last year highlighted the need we have for such a thing, so we want to make some movement on that front.”
