Black Swan Consulting brings nearly three decades of field-level experience to small and mid-size oil and gas operators who need more than a compliance checkbox — they need a safety program that actually works.
Policies copied from templates that don't reflect your actual equipment or hazards
OSHA citations that catch operators off-guard because no one was watching the right signals
Training programs that check a box but don't change behavior in the field
Incident investigations that identify what broke but never address why systems allowed it
Regulatory pressure from BSEE, Coast Guard, DOT, and OSHA with no clear internal owner
"Every incident that occurs was allowed by the systems and culture that existed before it happened. The question is never who failed — it's what failed around them."— Core HOP Principle, Dr. Todd Conklin
Black Swan was built for operators who understand the difference between a safety program that protects the company and one that protects the people doing the work. Those two things should never be in conflict.
From tank batteries and compressor stations to gas plants and pipeline systems — nearly three decades of production operations experience means no learning curve on your equipment or your hazards.
ProductionFacilitiesPipelineDrilling, completions, workover, and well intervention operations across multiple basins and jurisdictions. We speak the language of the rig floor and know what supervisors actually need to manage operations safely.
DrillingCompletionsWorkoverExtensive experience on large offshore production platforms — manned and unmanned — with full regulatory exposure to BSEE, USCG, and international maritime standards.
BSEEUSCGOffshoreSafety programs only work if the people doing the work trust them. We design management systems grounded in Human and Organizational Performance principles — practical, field-tested, and built around how people actually behave under pressure.
HOPSMSCultureWhen you've received a citation, the clock starts immediately. We guide you through informal conferences, abatement strategies, and building the record that supports your position.
Learn more →Full-scope compliance support across BSEE, U.S. Coast Guard, DOT Pipeline, and Texas Railroad Commission. Regulatory language translated into operational requirements your team can execute.
Learn more →Training built around your policies, your equipment, and your actual hazards. Built to change behavior in the field — not satisfy a recordkeeping requirement.
Learn more →HOP-grounded investigation methodology that looks past immediate cause to understand the system conditions that allowed the event — and builds recommendations that reduce recurrence.
Learn more →Built or rebuilt from the ground up — safety management systems designed to be used by real people in real field conditions. An operating system for your safety culture, not a document library.
Learn more →Not sure where your program has holes? We start with a structured conversation — no cost, no commitment. Most operators leave with three to five findings they didn't know existed.
Schedule now →"After an informal conference, our proposed penalty was reduced by more than 70%. More importantly, we left with a plan that actually fixed the conditions that caused the citation in the first place."
"We'd been operating for eleven years without a real incident investigation process. After building one grounded in HOP principles, our team started talking about near-misses differently — and reporting them."
"The training didn't feel like training. It was built around our equipment, our SOPs, and our actual field conditions. Our supervisors reference it on the job — that's never happened before."
A checklist built from nearly three decades of field observation. If three or more of these apply to your operation, you have work to do — and we can help you do it.
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Black Swan Consulting exists because most small and mid-size operators don't have the luxury of a full-time safety director with field experience across every phase of their operation.
They hire corporate safety managers who've never stood on a rig floor, or they rely on programs built by consultants who've never managed an actual incident. That gap costs people. Sometimes it costs them their lives.
"Experience is the only teacher that doesn't lie."
Black Swan is a sole-proprietor firm by design. When you work with us, you work with a consultant who has done the work — not a project manager who assigns it to a junior analyst.
Read the full story →The Free Safety Gap Assessment is a structured, no-cost conversation that helps you understand where your program is exposed. Most operators leave with specific findings — not general recommendations.