It took around three months, then a telephone interview which lead to a site visit. I was then notified by the Operations Manager I was successful and started soon after.
What does your job entail and which skills gained in the military do you use?
My new career has given me the chance to gain skills in the utilities industry thus advance my knowledge in all engineering aspects. The army gave me a solid platform to work from and I’ve moved from planned and preventative maintenance on an armoured fighting vehicle to the same on a robot.
What obstacles did you face when settling into your job?
I’ve never worked with gas or with any utilities companies, so it was like starting again but I’m learning every day and striving to better myself in every aspect of the job.
What aspects of resettlement training have you found useful in your job?
Learning to value yourself and not to undersell your skillset that you attained in the armed forces.
What advice would you give other Service leavers?
Stay positive, don’t undersell yourself. believe in your ability; the grass is greener on the other side!
Q&A with Benjamin Yates, former Lance Corporal:
What were your main reasons for leaving the Service?
Achieved what I wanted to gain from the army, wanted more control over my life like knowing when I can book holidays etc.
Which training, experience or qualifications gained during your Service career are now useful in civilian life?
NVQ Level 3 in Electrical Engineering.
Which aspects of Service life did you enjoy the most?
Travel and working on a wide variety of equipment.
Which aspects of Service life did you enjoy the least?
Not knowing if I’d be working on a weekend, not being able to plan any time off.
Did you attend a Career Transition Workshop (CTW) and if so, which aspects of the CTW did you find most helpful?
Yes, the CV writing.
Which other CTP resettlement training courses or workshops did you undertake (e.g. FAR, Business Start Up), and which aspects did you find most helpful?
CTP Employment Fair in Manchester.
What support did you receive from your CTP Career Consultant?
Emails with info on Employment Fairs and workshops.
Did you use CTP’s job finding service (e.g. RightJob, Central Support Team) and how useful was it to you?
RightJob, very useful as it allowed me to find out about this company, and then apply very easily.
Did you use the CTP website, including MyPlan, and if so, how useful was it to you?
I used the CV helper to get the right format for my CV.
How did you get your job, and what was the interview process like?
CTP website, phone call interview followed by a site visit and DBS check and drugs test.
What does your job entail and which skills gained in the military do you use?
Maintenance and repairs on the CISBOT, launching the robot and retrieving it. Electronics experience, CDRILS.
What obstacles did you face when settling into your job?
On the job learning.
What advice would you give other Service leavers?
Enjoy civilian life.