Cabot is grateful to America’s veterans and all those serving our country at home and abroad.
We’re also pleased to include veterans within the Cabot ranks, including Completions Manager Jim Edwards and Completions Engineer Jacob Swanson. We’d like to share a little bit of background on Jim and Jacob to help other veterans learn from their career paths and to possibly seek opportunities in the energy sector once leaving the military. At the bottom are also additional resources for veterans looking to transition to the energy industry.
Cabot Veterans Tell Their Stories
Jim Edwards, Cabot completions manager
Jim Edwards enlisted in the U.S. Army at age 21. After being stationed in Ft. Bliss in El Paso, TX, he was stationed in South Korea as a Patriot Launching Station Operator-Maintainer, putting him behind the wheel of the world’s most advanced missile system, the Patriot. During this time, he was tasked with operating and maintaining the Patriot Launching Station, including transporting, placement, electronics and maintenance (responsibilities that mirror some of the aspects of the hydraulic fracturing process).
Edwards’ experience working as a team member in the Army translates over to the Cabot completions team. The end goal of a project, the “mission,” is a team effort. “You have men and women working in many different roles but all towards a single purpose for the mission’s success,” says Edwards.
Edwards also says the sense of purpose and accomplishment between the military and energy sector are very similar.
“Our mission at Cabot — providing energy to help the country lower energy costs and fuel the economy – is very rewarding. In many ways, the natural gas industry, and the energy industry, in general, are at the forefront of protecting our future as well as securing energy independence.”
Jacob Swanson, and his two children, at their schools Veterans Day celebration breakfast
Jacob Swanson, graduated from the United States Naval Academy (USNA) and served as a U.S. Navy Surface Warfare Officer, with a sub-specialty in nuclear power.
After becoming an officer, Swanson’s first assignment was aboard a ship off the coast of Japan where he was in charge of enlisted sailors responsible for the ship’s radar and weapons systems. He was also in charge of piloting the ship and making sure it was maneuvered safely throughout his two-year tour. Afterward, he attended a one-year naval class for nuclear power training, which led to working in a nuclear power plant aboard the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier.
After five years of service in the U.S. Navy, Swanson had an opportunity to work in a completely new industry: oil and gas. Starting off as a field engineer for a producer in New York he naturally stepped into leadership positions and began working for Cabot in 2018.
Swanson explains that in the military you are moved into new positions every two years and “once you start to feel comfortable they move you to a new ship, new location, or job.” So, when he came into the oil and natural gas industry he was successful, in part, because of the adaptation skills he learned in the Navy.
Swanson adds, “the main thing that I learned at the USNA, and was put in the service to do, was to work with others and take on leadership roles.” He also notes the military teaches “the ability to land on your feet and take on a new task and to work with the team you have to see the mission through.”
Cabot is grateful to have Jim Edwards and Jacob Swanson part of our team and helping us fulfill our mission every day.
Career Opportunities for Veterans
The energy industry can be an ideal fit for veterans looking to pursue a civilian career where the skills developed during military service closely match those required to safely and responsibly produce and deliver oil and natural gas.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) developed the Veteran’s Energy Pipeline website to help facilitate employment of transitioning service members and veterans to the oil and gas industry. The site includes a career search tool to connect veterans with the top jobs in the industry when providing the service branch, personnel category, and occupation during their service.
For general information for veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses finding meaningful employment opportunities, visit the Hiring our Heroes website from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
In addition, the Learn How to Become website features several Veterans job search resources, including links to helpful websites. The website also features resume writing resources for Veterans and how to translate military skills into words that a civilian hiring official will understand.
To all Veterans, including Cabot employees and beyond, we thank you for your service!
SOURCES: Veterens Energy Pipeline, Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission, U.S. Department of Energy, learnhowtobecome.org, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
Kelsey was raised in Indiana, Pennsylvania and attended The Pennsylvania State University where she earned a degree in Communications. Kelsey works as the External Affairs Coordinator at Cabot where she manages external communications, including social media and community outreach projects.
Prior to starting her full-time position, Kelsey worked as a summer intern for Cabot while attending Penn State.
