A group of Nobel Energy people – mainly frontline staff across the Group companies – came together with the CEO Vugar Samadli for an informal breakfast. 

The idea was to listen to the frontline employees' possible needs, ideas, talk about everyone’s experiences at the company, as well as help the staff get to know one another, learn about organizational direction and from the valuable leadership experience.

For the participants, it was both thought-provoking and inspirational to listen to the CEO’s personal career story, including the failures he experienced along the way. Mr Samadli encouraged the employees to be more courageous and resolute to try new experiences, and gave them some practicable career tips.

For many of the employees, amid their busy schedules, it was value-adding to hear about the Group’s future plans, specifically about the Group’s growth intentions, directly from the top of the company. While talking about operations, the unanimous agreement was around the criticality of safety and excellence, which as the CEO put ‘remain in the heart of all the implemented projects’. 

The participants were curious to hear about Nobel Energy’s transformation plans that will see the development of a new, alternative energy business, in line with the company’s new strategy. 

Thanks to the candid nature of the event, the participants felt comfortable to raise and openly discuss their concerns with the CEO. A number of issues were addressed, new ideas and suggestions about process improvement were welcomed with a plan to be followed up. All in all, the event was a success – a great platform to meet with the top leadership, ask him open questions, raise issues, share ideas, and interact with colleagues from different subsidiaries, as well as have a better sight of the big picture.

Based on the participants’ feedback, ‘Breakfast with the CEO’ – that developed into an effective communication and learning platform – will need to continue.