As a young geophysicist with Republic Oil and Gas Company in Midland, Texas, Decker Dawson worked on seismic crews. When a critical shortage of such crews developed, Decker convinced a Republic client, Forest Oil, that he could run a seismic crew by himself. Motivated by his success, Decker founded his own company in 1952 at the age of 32. Under his innovative leadership, Dawson Geophysical has evolved into the largest land seismic company in North America. Today Decker is Chairman Emeritus of his Company. He has served as President of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists and was a recipient of its’ prestigious Enterprise Award. He also served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the International Association of Geophysical Contractors, and was inducted into the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum’s Hall of Fame in 1997.