From Flight Operations Officer to Project & Programme Management

Military Background

With just under 10 years’ service in the RAF, Matthew West has travelled extensively overseas in several Aviation Operations roles, revolving around the Force’s fleet of helicopters. Responsible for operations and risk management, as well as some aspects of helicopter training, he’s spent at least half of his RAF career on international missions. These overseas operations have been both exhilarating and highly rewarding with time spent in Afghanistan, Kenya, Jordan, Qatar and the US, as well as numerous exercises across Europe.

But with job satisfaction at its peak, Matthew decided the time was right to leave the RAF and seek new challenges. This would also provide some stability that until now had been missing in his life. Before leaving though, Matthew began his preparations for a new career attaining both a Masters’ Degree in Business Administration and a project management qualification. Both of which he knew would prove incredibly valuable in his search for a new challenge.

Civilian Transition

Matthew started his search for new opportunities by signing up with various service charities, including the Career Transition Partnership (CTP). “I attended several industry days to begin with to see what the various sectors had to offer. This allowed me to look at where my core set of existing skills and experiences would best fit,” recalls Matthew. The breakthrough came when he attended a CTP event in Newbury. A colleague had recommended that he should visit the Fujitsu stand where his CV was appraised, and a strong fit with project and programme management was identified.

“The fit between my skillset and the recommended role was extremely logical, so I applied for the position. Before I knew it I was attending the assessment centre, and a job offer duly followed,” explains Matthew. But he wasn’t due to leave his role in the RAF for another 4 months. Thankfully, this wasn’t an issue as Fujitsu was happy to keep the role open until he had served his notice period.

Life at Fujitsu

Matthew’s extensive military experience has undoubtedly helped his smooth transition to project and programme management life at Fujitsu. Leadership, people management and communication are just three of the transferable skills that Matthew cites has put him in good stead for his new career. “I’ve been managing and leading people for the past 10 years, so this aspect of the role is something I just take for granted,” he reasons.

In his first role, Matthew was pitched in at the deep-end, working on one of the largest programmes within Fujitsu Defence. But despite Matthew’s lack of IT industry experience, the support and training he received ensured the transition was seamless. “It’s a very dynamic, fast-paced environment. But the mentoring framework and support network makes you feel very secure. You’re trusted to deliver.”

Matthew’s latest role is in bid management, where he is alsoable to put to good use his military skills and experience once again. “In the military, we’re used to innovation, performing in a fast-paced environment and continually driving performance. So, these skills are really useful when it comes to deliveringcompelling, and ultimately winning bid proposals,” he concludes. And if this next bid he is working on is successful, Matthew will be tasked with the project delivery.