Client: Superior Energy Services

Testimonial: Ray Lieber, VP of Human Resources (Former)

Before PegasusAI³ / Dan’s Involvement

When I joined Superior Energy Services, the company had grown rapidly through acquisitions and ballooned to 3,500 employees—but it lacked a centralized HR function. Turnover was alarmingly high—averaging 45% across 25 business units, with some as high as 60–70%. Despite using templates from the Saratoga Institute to calculate turnover costs, everything was manual, slow, and fragmented. We were flying blind, unable to connect workforce issues to financial impact, and HR had little strategic influence across the business.

Turnover wasn’t visible on a balance sheet. Controllers weren’t seeing it, so business leaders weren’t acting on it. The cost, risk, and lost opportunity were buried.

The Turning Point

That changed when I met Dan. He didn’t come in pitching a solution—he listened. Deeply. He understood our operational and cultural landscape before suggesting anything. What followed was a level of partnership I rarely see in consultants.

Dan had technology that I knew was the answer to a lot of our problems. Superior Energy Services was a 3,500-person oilfield services company growing at 10% annually, but the turnover was crippling. Across 25 business units, average attrition hovered around 45%, with some units reaching as high as 60–70%—an inordinate rate for any industry.

If I was going to make a meaningful long-term impact on the company’s EBITDA, we had to get turnover under control. Dan’s platform enabled us to do just that.

His data allowed us to build a customized manpower report—one of the most powerful tools I’ve ever used. It included comprehensive turnover data by unit, geography, and role. With it in hand, I could walk into individual business units and say: “I have a story to show you. There’s a way to curtail what’s happening—and I can help.”

And in a highly decentralized environment where HR wasn’t always welcomed or required, that ability to tell a compelling, data-backed story made all the difference.

Worker Availability & Relocation Strategy

Another major insight we uncovered was the availability—or lack—of qualified workers in certain regions. One business unit needed a specific type of outdoor/offshore operator. When we reviewed the data, it became clear that the local labor market simply didn’t have enough of these workers.

We used the data to shift our strategy and started recruiting outside Louisiana, offering relocation packages to bring in qualified talent. Normally, companies don’t pay relocation costs for hourly workers—but when local talent doesn’t exist, you either relocate them or rely on subcontracting, which can be even more costly and less reliable. In this case, relocation was the smarter, more sustainable move—and it was made possible by having the right insight at the right time.

Business Impact & Savings

The turnover challenge wasn’t just operational—it was deeply financial. Across our 25 business units, annual turnover costs were between $1.5 and $2 million. It was a massive, invisible drain on the business.

Because of Dan’s help, I was able to present a strong business case to leadership. One of the biggest decisions we made was outsourcing the recruiting function—an $800,000 annual investment. Even with that cost, we still saved the company nearly $1 million a year. That level of impact—and the strategic clarity behind it—would not have happened without Dan’s support and insights.

If We Hadn’t Taken Action

Without this work, turnover would have continued to quietly drain the business financially. Talent gaps would have widened. Poor hiring would have persisted.