travismccaughey

Oilfield operators aren’t just turning valves—they’re driving production like pros in a NASCAR race. From balancing pressures to optimizing flowback, their work sits at the heart of daily field operations. This blog breaks down who builds the “track,” who maintains the “car,” and how operators keep the whole team competitive lap after lap.

Competition in the oil and gas industry isn’t just about price—it’s about sharpening performance, driving innovation, and building stronger vendor relationships. By fostering healthy competition, you can keep costs in check, ensure fair value, and avoid complacency. From negotiating contracts to choosing vendors, competition pushes companies to improve, reinvest, and stay resilient in a demanding market.

Traditional safety often fixates on what went wrong. In this conversation with Scratchie’s James Kell, we dig into Self-Determination Theory—autonomy, competence, and relatedness—and why real-time recognition outperforms quotas and delayed awards. From top-down “scratchies” to bottom-up Convo Cards and peer shout-outs, you’ll see practical ways to build buy-in, speed reporting, and lift safety, retention, and productivity without turning recognition into a control lever.