Making the move to a new job role or career can be a challenging and disorienting change. This experience is intensified for those making the switch from military service to a civilian role, given the intensity, danger and level of responsibility involved in the armed forces.
The Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade is proud to now be a preferred supplier to the Career Transition Partnership (CTP).
To mark being added to the CTP Preferred Supplier List, the Daily Update spoke to Chartered Institute members and internal team with military backgrounds, including those who have shaped the Chartered Institute’s training, qualifications and apprenticeships.
They each discussed the skills that military service cultivates and the value of training to hone those skills for civilian employers.
Relevant experience
The global scope and logistical challenges of military operations mean that many servicemen have skills that naturally lend themselves to a future career in trade.
Trade and customs consultant Ray Burgin explained how his Royal Air Force (RAF) career gave him insight into “the practical application” of supply chains and logistics, working as part of a mobile logistics team to move items around the world, from countries in Africa and the Middle East to South America.
This gave him hands-on experience with the “physical movement of goods – the buying and selling of products, storing and distributing them”, which supported his transition into a customs role later in his career.
After leaving the military, he took on roles at defence firms like British Aerospace and at General Electric’s oil and gas division. Understanding how to get goods from A-to-B provided a strong foundation for his move into customs, which he describes as the “strategic, technical overview” aspect of goods’ movements.
Trade roles
This point was echoed by Chartered Institute trade and customs consultant, Jane Tait, who has applied her public financial management skills in conflict zones worldwide, culminating in her being awarded an Afghanistan Civilian Medal for her work in Herat, Jalabad and Mazaar-ah-Sharif.
She says there are many trade roles that ex-military personnel could excel at, highlighting border force posts. Experience dealing with dangerous goods – “your oils, petroleums, nicotine, drugs, and all different chemicals” – serves as good preparation for addressing security risks.
She adds that ex-service personnel have “inherent security credentials”, making them excellent candidates for work in customs warehousing. The requirement that goods are stored securely, with proof that they’ve not left the warehouse and entered free circulation, makes those with enhanced security credentials desirable.
Tait also notes that these skills are being increasingly recognised in the commercial sector, with e-commerce giant Amazon UK offering military internships for ex-service personnel aiming to move into a corporate role.
Transferable skills
Beyond logistics and supply chains, other less obvious military roles also provide trade experience, often within fast-paced, high-pressure environments.
Burgin describes talking to someone who had left the army’s catering corps, which is responsible for supplying food to all army units.
“They knew how to order goods, work out the costs, consider the shelf-life and think about storing them, whether they’d need refrigerated or controlled environments.
“Talking to them, you could see the lights switching on and the realisation hit them that all companies need that skillset, regardless of what the product is.”
The right stuff
All are enthusiastic about the wealth of technical, practical and so-called “soft” skills that military service develops.
Burgin highlights the “adaptability” required of personnel, and how responding to dangerous, unforeseen situations builds “the wherewithal and courage to move forward with what you believe is the right choice”.
“These are all skills that external business hunger for”, he says, “they’re natural, human skills that become part of your DNA, your instinct”.
His point was echoed by Steve Horrell, the Chartered Institute’s apprenticeship success manager, who learned Russian and Farsi for his role as an army communication systems analyst.
He said many in the service had the ability to “make decisions in a split second with huge, huge ramifications – almost without thinking”.
This ability is much sought-after by companies looking to nurture leaders who can effectively manage teams. Horrell adds that they “need operations managers, they need project managers, they need solid team leaders”.
Chartered Institute member Katie Fryer, who rose to the role of sergeant after ten years’ service in the British Army Intelligence Corps, added that it’s not just the decision-making aspect of leadership that service nurtures. In addition to being able to “eat pressure for breakfast” she says the military teaches you “how to look after your personnel personally and professionally, we know how to build a team”.
Gaps to plug
However, apprenticeship training delivery coach Jim Allsop says that, despite the breadth of skills he gained in the military, he still needed “to plug some gaps” when entering the civilian workforce.
Much like Burgin, his military experience was aligned with trade. Working in logistics, he helped move goods including humanitarian relief, to what he terms “some pretty obscure places”.
“I still do the same job,” he explains, “whether it's a civilian freight forwarder or a military freight forwarder. But there are gaps between them.”
He notes differences in documentation and vehicle types, as well as the fact he was an “air specialist” in the military, while also teaching apprentices about road and ocean freight.
Bridging the gap
Training can “bridge” these gaps, as Horrell puts it, providing sectoral knowledge that complements the communication, decision-making and managerial skills already developed in related military fields.
He wants people to know that there is a highly relevant “career pathway” for ex-servicemen into international trade.
“There are too many people ‘falling’ out of the military,” Horrell adds, while many trade professionals say they “fell into international trade.”
He believes there should be a more structured approach to career progression in the sector, and that this would be hugely beneficial to ex-service personnel, who are well-positioned to provide employers with much sought-after skills and experience.
Horrell, Allsop and Burgin’s work at the Chartered Institute is creating this structure, with a range of qualifications, training and IOEx apprenticeships, for those already in relevant roles.
Time to ‘branch out’
Fryer, who now acts as Travis Perkins’ customs compliance manager, urges ex-service personnel to take the opportunity to retrain, with post-military training a chance “to choose the courses that mean something you”.
“I fully encourage branching out and being curious at this stage. You have nothing to lose and potentially a great and interesting career to gain.
“International Trade is a great career for anyone in the military. With the exposure you have had to international conflict, politics and logistics, you will be surprised how much of it is transferable.”
