When you’re standing in a line and you see almost everyone in sight interacting with their mobile phones by viewing, listening, swiping or typing—do you ever wonder how people used to pass the time while they were waiting?

The Pew Research Center says 95 percent of Americans own a mobile phone and 77 percent own a smartphone. These numbers are also similar for Canadians and for those across North America under 30 years old, the percentages are even higher.

I had an interesting conversation with my young son the other day—about how phones used to be.

Remember? Wired to the wall. Trapped by that wire.

The huge advance with the invention of the cordless phone that would let you roam all the way to the perimeter of your home or office—and permanently lose the handset under a couch cushion!

Albert Einstein, as you may recall, was pretty good at understanding complex stuff like, say, the makeup of the universe, quantum physics and the like. It’s interesting that he’s the one who said that if you didn’t understand something well enough to explain it to your grandmother, you didn’t really understand it.

Well, I like to think of myself as something of an oilfield technology expert—I‘m even able to successfully explain it all to my Grandma, who totally ‘gets it’ now. So I hope I can explain its benefits to you in three basic steps. 

Smart phones and other devices have become essential tools to navigate our daily life, helping us to read news, contact friends, and see new photos of loved ones. But beyond that, smart phones and tablets have become a part of the standard toolbox for any working professional. In the Oil and Gas sector, mobile access has become a requirement for an increasingly connected workforce. As of 2016, 80% of O&G CEOs we surveyed plan to invest the same or more into digital technologies over the next 3-5 years.