Cost Performance & Value Lead

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Job Family Group:
Production Engineering Upstream
Worker Type:
Regular
Posting Start Date:
October 30, 2026
Business Unit:
Upstream
Experience Level:
Experienced Professionals
Job Description:

Job Description

1. About the Role

The Cost Performance & Value Lead will step-change how Production Excellence manages, challenges and influences OPEX performance across the INOVA and Mero non-operated portfolio (~900 MM SS). The role integrates cost performance management, industry benchmarking using available metrics such as McKinsey and A&M, forward spend forecasting based on historical performance and planned technical activities, contract & ballot strategy evaluation against cost impact and structured JV influence to improve cost transparency, mature value opportunities, close structural cost gaps and move assets toward top-quartile competitiveness. The incumbent will turn operational, contractual and financial data into clear value cases, use them to shape Operator decisions, strengthen Shell positions and deliver practical, sustainable OPEX improvements.

Key accountabilities

- Own the integrated OPEX performance view for INOVA and Mero, covering Operator Billing, Actuals, Work Program & Budget, Latest Estimate, Ballots and Operational Plan.
- Analyze cost performance at (i) asset, (ii) FPSO, (iii) discipline and (iii) contract level, explaining variances, trends, and changes in scope, rate, volume, FX or timing. Work close to the technical discipline and SC focal points is paramount. Given the nature of NOV business, it is required to adopt some practices to infer figures and their range of uncertainty and ensure consistency across asset/FPSO for such assumptions.
- Build robust quarterly forecasts (support group quarter LE and monthly routine) and annual plan assumptions by integrating production outlook, contract conditions and emerging risks and opportunities.
- Assess deepwater OPEX drivers and use internal and external benchmarks to identify structural cost gaps, outliers and repeatable good practices across the portfolio.
- Translate cost gaps into risk-based opportunity statements with clear baselines, value potential, dependencies, owners, milestones and decision requirements. Be a key member of the Roomba framework: develop and maintain a health funnel of opportunities for Prod Excellence.
- Lead JV approach: Prepare fact-based technical and commercial positions to influence the Operator through JV governance forums and working-level engagements. Challenge Operator (budgets, forecasts, ballots, contract strategies and cost proposals) distinguishing unavoidable spending from controllable, deferrable or avoidable demand.
- Partner with Contracting & Procurement, Finance, Economics, Legal, Operations and technical disciplines to develop negotiation strategies and aligned Shell positions.
- Define business requirements for digital and analytical solutions that automate data ingestion, reconciliation, classification, benchmarking and scenario analysis.
- Coach and quality-assure cost-analysis activities across the team, setting standards for analytical rigor, commercial framing and executive communication.

2. Skills and Requirements

Experience and knowledge

- Engineering degree with 10+ yr experience in cost performance within upstream and its dependencies with contract and commercial dependencies as well as technical disciplines.
- Robust knowledge of costs related to operations activities since this is mainly Opex driven. Candidates should be highly capable of deriving inferences of cost movements within a NOV environment.
- Good understanding of O&G Joint Operating Agreements, JV governance and cost-recovery mechanisms.
- Demonstrated ability to build business cases, engage Operator, influence outcomes and convert analysis into opportunity funnel.
- Advanced analytical capability using large and imperfect datasets, with strong Excel and data-visualization skills.
- Experience shaping digital or automated cost-management solutions is highly advantageous.
- Fluent professional English and Portuguese, written and spoken.

Critical skills and behaviors

- Influence without authority: building credibility through fact-based opportunities identification, building credible solution space, navigates conflicting interests and secures commitment across organizational boundaries.
- Analytical problem solving: separates signal from noise, tests assumptions and converts complex data into clear decisions.
- Constructive challenge: asks difficult questions, uses evidence and remains solution-oriented.
- Delivery focus: maintains a disciplined opportunity pipeline and follows through to measurable outcomes.
- Integrated thinking: connects technical, operational, contractual, financial and JV considerations.
- Executive communication: produces concise, decision-focused narratives and recommendations.
- Collaboration and leadership: mobilizes diverse disciplines, shares credit and raises team capability.

3. Additional Comments on the Position

- This position is not limited to cost reporting or variance control. Its primary value driven and it aims to combine robust cost engineering with opportunity identification, commercial challenge and influence of Operator decisions.
- The role operates in a non-operated JV environment and therefore depends on influence rather than direct authority. Success requires trusted relationships, strong evidence, effective use of JV governance and pragmatic collaboration with the Operator and partners.
- The role must maintain a balanced view of value. Cost improvements must not compromise safety, asset integrity, reliability, production performance or regulatory compliance.
- The position supports both producing and under-development assets and requires the ability to connect near-term cost performance with longer-term operating strategy and lifecycle competitiveness.
- Hands-on production of internal controls and management reports remains part of the role; however, the core contribution is to generate insights, frame decisions, mobilize cross-functional action and deliver sustainable business outcomes.
- Indicative success outcomes include a trusted and auditable OPEX performance view, improved forecast quality, a prioritized pipeline of quantified opportunities, closure of material cost gaps, stronger Shell influence on Operator choices and demonstrable movement toward top-quartile competitiveness.

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