Human Resource Development (HR) is the Key to Energy Transition

Purnomo Yusgiantoro

Former Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources 2000-2009

Former Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) for the period 2000-2009 Purnomo Yusgiantoro said that the development of human resources (HR) is the key to a successful transition to clean energy.

Indonesia’s current HR Development Index is still below neighboring countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, and Thailand. It is even below the average index of ASEAN countries of 0.726. “The Indonesian Human Development Index (HDI) is still at 0.705,” he said during the 2022 IPA Convex Morning Talk discussion, titled “Securing the Future Leaders of Indonesia’s Oil and Gas Industry,” Friday (23/9) at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC).

He argued that in the process of the energy transition, oil and gas companies have also begun to transform using technology so that in their operations, several job positions have undergone a significant decline.

“In the current oil and gas industry, it is estimated that by 2040, the job positions that will undergo a drastic decline are equipment operators and drilling, marine & nautical and trades which will decline by more than 60 percent,” he said.

For this reason, during the ongoing transition or shift in energy use, the human resources needed are the human resources who have valuable skills, knowledge, and experience, or what is called Human Capital. “In the context of HR, it means that what we need to prepare is someone who will become a leader,” he said.

For example, to become a strategic leader one needs to start with capable self-leadership. Only then can they lead others, lead an organization. When all that is completed, only then can someone be called a strategic leader. “Currently, the human resources needed must fulfill adaptive, creative, innovative, and transformative criteria,” he said.

Purnomo acknowledged that the Millennials and Gen Z currently do not have a high interest to work in the oil and gas sector. “Two out of three teenagers in the world believe that the oil and gas industry causes more problems than solutions for their lives,” he said.

Consequently, Purnomo argues, oil and gas companies need to make changes in their business operations by considering the environmental impact and improving the living standards of their workers.

In the political and oil and gas world, the name Purnomo Yusgiantoro must be familiar to our ears. His continuous and consistent progress has made him a highly respected candidate for high cabinet positions. Born in Semarang, on June 16, 1951, the man previously served as Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources from 2000-2009.

Before starting his political career, this father of three children started his career in education, namely as a lecturer at the Faculty of Mineral Technology at Trisakti University, in which he has taught since 1974, in addition to being a Natural Resources Consultant—Basic Earth Science System. He then completed his master’s studies at two different universities namely the Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, and the University of Colorado at Boulder Main Campus. Then he continued to complete doctoral studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder Main Campus, the United States.

While completing his doctoral studies, the man known just as Purnomo to his friends also taught at the University of Colorado at Boulder as a lecturer in the Department of Economics in 1989. After returning from the United States, the husband of Sri Murniati Sachro teaches in the Master of Management program at STIE LPMI and holds tenure as a permanent lecturer at Postgraduate Master of Management and Economics in Development Studies (IESP) Atmajaya University since 1993 until now. He then obtained the title of professor from Atmajaya University (2002) and his alma mater Bandung Institute of Technology (2009).

Not only teaching at well-known universities in Indonesia and the United States, but Purnomo also teaches leadership courses after being named the best graduate of LEMHANNAS and receiving the Wibawa Seroja Nugraha award in 1992. Experience is life’s best teacher. Armed with experience as a lecturer, consultant in the field of Resources, and participant and teacher in leadership courses, Purnomo’s career ascended ever higher. His role began when he was appointed the Second Head of the Domestic and Foreign Marketing Division, Board of Commissioners of the Government for Pertamina (DKPP) from 1993-1998.

Then he served as the Governor of OPEC, in Vienna, Austria from 1996-1998. Slowly but surely, Purnomo’s name began to be noticed by most people, organizations, and government offices. Then in 2000, he was appointed Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources during Gus Dur’s administration. Strong knowledge of Natural Resources apparently made Purnomo worthy of serving in the same position for two consecutive periods. In fact, in Megawati’s Mutual Cooperation Cabinet, Purnomo was regarded as the Minister with the best performance. The high regard for his performance made President SBY re-appoint him as Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources for the second term.

However, unlike the previous three periods, Purnomo was not re-appointed as a minister in 2009 for the United Indonesia Cabinet II. Apart from working for the state, this grandfather of five is also an active writer. Four of his books have been published and he has also written many articles on Economics and energy resources.