As Executive Vice President, Brandon Ward is responsible for overseeing ARI, in addition to his responsibilities with our sister company, Dudley Land Company. Before becoming the Executive Vice President of ARI, he spent the previous 20 years working as a landman in nearly every state in the US that produces oil and gas. He’s performed title examinations, performed/managed both mineral and surface acquisition projects, due diligenc, and more. Aside from work, Brandon enjoys hanging out with his family, hunting, fishing, and golfing, and thinks that there’s not a better feeling in life than a good eye roll from his daughters after a corny dad joke.

Mike Gibson has over 18 years of experience as in the energy industry and accepted the position of Managing Director at ARI in January of 2018 where he has successfully expanded the ARI Houston office by bringing in a multitude of new clients as well as staffing the Houston office with 30 plus highly experienced Land, Division Order and Accounting employees. Mr. Gibson handles business development for ARI and oversees/runs the Houston office with daily interactions with the OKC office. Prior to coming on board with ARI, Mr. Gibson was a landman at Cinco Energy Management Group where he held positions as Landman, Project Manager and Land Manager-Corporate Office. During his time at Cinco he worked in a multitude of States, counties and basins throughout the United States and has become highly respected within the industry. Mr. Gibson is a member of AAPL, HAPL and PBLA. He has been highly involved in HAPL over the last 10 years. He has held positions as Chairman, Director, 3rd VP, 2nd VP, 1st VP and President as well as serving on AAPL committees. Also, in 2015 Mr. Gibson was recognized as one of Texas Best Landman by Texas Top Producers and TIPRO. He earned a Bachelor of Science from Stephen F. Austin State University and is a Certified Professional Landman. Mr. Gibson loves spending time with his family and enjoys college football (Oklahoma Sooners), disc golf and any outdoor sports.

Nan Carlson is our Land Administration Manager and has been a pillar at ARI since she joined the team in 2004. She ended up in the industry by chance, seeing an open position at an independent office support company similar to ARI. However, her father was a landman so she may have been destined for the industry. She’s spent her career honing her skills in land and lease records, lease records operating systems, conversions, lease and title research, division order calculations, and record-keeping at various companies across the country. At one point, she was in charge of converting a past employer’s 20,000+ lease records to an in-house system, so she’s no stranger to large projects. Now, she manages staff and client work in the lease records and division order departments for ARI.

Grant Sparks is the Account Manager for our Tulsa and Oklahoma City-based clients. His grandfather was a geologist and oilman, so Grant always knew he wanted to work in the energy industry. He has a BA in accounting as well as his MBA and began his career with IBM Business Consulting Services supporting several energy companies. In 2015, he joined the ARI team. In his free time, he likes to travel and visit National Parks. What he appreciates most about the ARI team is that everyone genuinely cares about each other outside of the office setting, which makes all the difference during the workday.

Cody Walker is our Lease Records Supervisor. He became interested in the oil and gas industry through a family member and has never looked back. He began his career doing imaging in a courthouse and transitioned to contract due diligence work before joining the ARI team to specialize in lease records. As our Lease Records Supervisor, he maintains our clients’ records, contracts, and reports. He also supervises and assists our analysts and clerks in their day-to-day work to ensure that each project is completed correctly and efficiently. In his free time, he likes being with friends and family, especially his wife and their new son. He also likes to stay active and participate in sports. His favorite things about working at ARI are the family-oriented atmosphere and the new skills he gains by working on a variety of client projects.

Kevin Kline is the Lease Records Supervisor in our Houston office. He’s responsible for directing set-up, analysis, and maintenance of leases and contracts, as well as communicating with clients about their operations. He ended up in the industry almost by accident, coincidentally interviewing for an accounting position with an oil and gas company. However, with a little encouragement from his father-in-law (an industry veteran), he pursued a position in their lease records office instead. There, he found his passion and has been doing lease records ever since. He’s a people person and enjoys the variety in his work since no two days at ARI are ever quite the same. In his spare time, he loves seeking new adventures with his wife and daughter or playing in disc golf tournaments.

Becky Jackson has been in the Oil & Gas Industry for several years and has worn many hats, starting out as the assistant to a Land Broker and eventually, was hired on by an Oil & Gas Company as a Division Order Analyst. Over time, she’s taken classes to build new skills in lease records and division orders and she’s now the Division Order Supervisor of our Tulsa team. In her current role, she is the lead support for the Division Order Analysts and assists with setting up new client assets. She also ensures that all of our workflows run smoothly. In her spare time, Becky loves to spend time with her husband and 4 amazing children, cook, be active, and listen to music.

Seth Jortner is the Division Order Manager in our Houston office. His father was a petroleum engineer and Seth knew that he wanted to work in oil and gas from a young age, but wanted to focus more on the business side. He began his career as a landman before moving into lease and division order analyst roles. Now he’s the head of our division order team where he oversees, leads, and directs the establishment of and maintenance of title ownership in oil and gas assets for multiple clients. He also trains and manages the team so we can deliver consistent, high-quality products for our clients. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling and spending time with his wife and kids, as well as playing disc golf.