Local economic development

Objectives

ExxonMobil works closely with local communities to understand the unique needs of the areas where we operate and to identify and help contribute to long-term, positive local economic and social development. Our approach to local economic development integrates local content and local community investment into project planning, execution and operations.

Local content

ExxonMobil takes a long-term, coordinated, strategic approach to developing human, social and economic capacity with tangible, lasting results for people, communities, and businesses in host countries.

We focus on employing and training local personnel, supporting local suppliers and service providers, and helping improve the livelihood of community members. We develop a local content plan specific to each country or area to establish objectives for long-term economic development, taking into account social and economic conditions, the nature of the project and the community’s needs.

Local hiring and development

Hiring locally helps us meet our staffing needs and advances local economic development and education. We aim to enhance the long-term capability of the local workforce. Our approach includes recruitment, training, and succession planning for national employees. 

We hire local individuals and help them develop technical and leadership skills that will benefit them throughout their careers, with ExxonMobil or future employers. Our development program includes training in relevant technical and vocational skills, health and safety, environmental protection, management skills and business conduct.

More information on Investing in People can be found here.

Local supplier development and utilization

We understand the importance of building and maintaining a qualified and competitive supply chain in the countries in which we operate. Our approach to local supplier development and utilization includes purchasing goods and services from local suppliers and building their capabilities to help create a competitive local industrial base.

We work with a range of stakeholders, including host country governments, nongovernmental organizations and local communities to support the development of local vendors. To become a supplier for ExxonMobil a local vendor must meet our robust safety, technical, environmental and human rights expectations and requirements. When possible, we work with businesses owned by local individuals, women and members of historically disadvantaged communities to help them become competitive vendors that can contribute to our business and the long-term economic progress of the community.

More information on Sustainable Procurement can be found here.

Investments in local communities

We support economic development of local communities with our investments. We engage and collaborate with community members, stakeholders and host governments to develop meaningful projects that help build and sustain economic growth while improving social conditions. We consider the development goals of each community when deciding where, when and how best to invest.

Management and application

For example, in Guyana, providing opportunities for local hiring and workforce development is a vital part of our commitment to enhancing the economic and social benefits associated with our activities. Our strategy to develop a diverse and talented workforce has two components — the recruitment and development of Guyanese personnel who can play a role in our local operations, and the continued development of a global pool of talent capable of meeting our future business needs wherever we operate. We apply proven training curriculums, industry best practices and leading technology to support local workforce development.

Local suppliers are important to the success of our operations. We are committed to working with them, and other stakeholders, to develop local companies and a competitive industrial base.

ExxonMobil Guyana established the Centre for Local Business Development (“the Centre”) which enables local firms to learn about opportunities in the oil and gas sector, strengthen their competitiveness, and prepare to supply the oil and gas sector with various services. The Centre maintains an interactive database our prime contractors use to post tendering opportunities and to identify possible suppliers, contractors and subcontractors. International companies looking for potential local partnerships also use the Centre.

Additional information about our local content efforts in Guyana can be found here. 

In addition to investments in local capacity building, ExxonMobil contributes to voluntary social investments worldwide. For more information on our global contributions including donations from the ExxonMobil Corporation, visit our Worldwide Giving Report.