DCP Midstream.

• Author: Ryckman, Lisa
• Position: ENERGY/NATURAL RESOURCES

DCP MIDSTREAM IS DETERMINED TO GET BIGGER It is just as determined to get better.

Chairman and CEO Thomas O'Connor knows that those two processes don't necessarily go hand-in-hand. He recognizes the challenge and welcomes it.

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"When you set a goal of being excellent every day, as well as dialing up growth as significantly as we have, it will stress an organization," he says. "The biggest challenge is building an organization with the experience to figure out how to break the challenges into manageable pieces, and most importantly, believes in the goals we've set and the vision of what the company will look like if we're successful."

The 83-year-old company, jointly owned by Spectra Energy and Phillips 66, is a leader in the energy industry's midstream segment. It is the nation's second-largest natural gas gatherer and processor and the largest natural gas liquids producer, with about 3,100 employees operating 61 plants and more than 62,000 miles of pipeline in 18 states. It's also one of the largest marketers of natural gas and natural gas by products.

"We're a company that historically had invested S500 to S600 million per year in our system. Now we're investing well in excess of $2 billion...