When Mahad Nadeem Janjua arrived in Europe from Pakistan he swapped economics for geoscience and went on to a Master’s degree in Europe’s prestigious IDEA League joint university programme, all supported by scholarships. Now with Harbour Energy, he has switched to data science but is also emerging as a young professional representative and digitalisation advocate at international meetings including last year at EAGE Oslo. Lifetime ‘hobby musician’, he has even busked on the streets of Hamburg.
Upbringing in Pakistan
I grew up moving around the country quite a bit because of my parents’ jobs, both being doctors. I went to private school, and my schooling years really lay the foundation for all my pursuits and passions in my life to date. I dabbled in different hobbies, from sports like football, cricket and table tennis to learning how to play the guitar, singing on stage, and even drawing and painting.
Overseas ambition
From early on in school, I had the desire to study economics in the US. But this is an expensive option for international students, so I chose a German university in Bremen for my undergraduate studies. There, my economist ambitions quickly gave way to an interest in geoscience. Much of this had to do with the very cool field trips the university programme had on offer! But I always considered myself to be good at mathematics and physics too, so specialising in geophysics seemed like a perfect blend. I applied and got accepted on a full merit sponsorship to the IDEA League Applied Geophysics Joint Master’s Programm offered by TU Delft, ETH Zürich, and RWTH Aachen.
Learnings from IDEA years
Sponsorship from Shell for the IDEA League programme was really a big moment in life. I won the only slot for a non-EU applicant, and so I knew I had to make the most of this opportunity. It allowed me to experience three different universities, countries, cultures, within the space of just two years. In particular, I had a lot of fun at TU Delft, where I learnt a lot about wave equations and cheese sandwiches, and started to build a professional network resulting in a summer internship at Wintershall Dea (now Harbour Energy).
Career to date
After my Master’s graduation in 2021, I briefly moved to Crawley, UK, as a seismic processing geophysicist at CGG (now Viridien). Returning to Wintershall Dea, I began working as a data scientist. The motivation behind this career switch was two-fold. One, the Covid-19 pandemic and the repercussions on the oil and gas industry really highlighted the volatility in the job market prompting me to develop competencies that had applications across industries. Second, artificial intelligence was, and is even more so now, a very exciting booming sector where I could bring together my knowledge and skills to digital technology applied to the oil and gas industry. Now I work in different business units in Germany and Norway, developing digital tools and products to optimise workflows for subsurface specialists.
Achievements most proud of
I have had numerous opportunities to visit places, attend conferences, and meet highly skilled professionals as part of my work. In August 2024 as part of the ONS conference in Stavanger, Norway, I had the opportunity to participate in a round table discussion with the Crown Prince of Norway and professionals from around the world to discuss how digital technology can play a role in addressing energy poverty and climate injustice. Being invited to a leadership development programme at Oxford, UK, was a recent highlight.
Young professional perspective
I am a strong believer in driving change from within. Efforts for energy security and affordability need to be appropriately balanced with efforts towards energy sustainability, and I believe that as a young professional looking to contribute meaningfully, this industry has and will continue to offer a lot.
Music in your life
Outside work, I am a passionate hobbyist musician. It runs in the family. My father was a vocalist in a band back in his day, so were my brother and sister in their school days. I was a a vocalist and rhythm guitarist in school bands, and at university played solo and band shows. At the beginning of my career in Hamburg, I also explored busking/street performing for a while.
Public communicator role
Having been a performer all my life, being on stage comes naturally. I often have the opportunity to speak at conferences and other events and really enjoy being able to contribute something of value. I also learn a lot from exchanges with the audiences.
