Michael Rozenfeld, partner of Boomtown Oil, is today’s Forty Under 40 featured honoree.

After college graduation, Michael was recruited by Shell Exploration and Production Co. to complete a petrophysical evaluation on the tight gas Slick Ranch Field and Vicksburg Formation in the lower Rio Grande Valley in South Texas. Within a year, he was serving as the project’s lead petrophysicist.

Though by the age of 27, Michael cashed in his personal savings to co-found his first company, South Texas Reservoir Alliance LLC, a move that brought considerable skepticism from his inner circle.

“People told us we were crazy to quit our stable jobs and too young to be out on our own,” Michael said. “There were few companies started by people in our peer group at that time.”

Michael said the experience he gained at South Texas Reservoir Alliance was instrumental in helping him embark on his next adventure: co-founding Boomtown Oil and Gas Co. LLC, a privately-owned, Houston-based E&P focused on low-cost, economic and technically sound operations in major basins across the Lower 48 where he now serves as the geoscience lead.

Click here for Michael’s complete profile.

Take a look at all of the Forty Under 40 honorees.