about SBAC > sbac at work > recruitment and secondment > secondments and industrial placements > Chris Brown

Background
During my time on the Rolls-Royce graduate training scheme I identified a develop need with regard to my knowledge and experience of the wider aerospace industry. However, I was unsure of how to gain the appropriate experience that would develop me in this area.

During the summer of 2005 I represented Rolls Royce at the Schools Aerospace Challenge as a team leader, which is a week-long national aerospace competition for teams of 16-18 year old students at Cranfield University. The awards ceremony was held at the IMechE headquarters in London in November of the same year, where I met Dr Mike Steeden, Director, Civil Air Transport and Engineering & Technology, Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC).

During my conversation with Mike I mentioned my desire to gain a greater understanding of the wider aerospace industry, and after further discussion about how to get such experience, Mike offered me a 6-month secondment at the SBAC.

After discussing this opportunity with my Early Career Development Advisor and my senior manager, and after submitting a business case detailing how I, and Rolls-Royce would benefit from this secondment, it was agreed that I would undertake the secondment at the SBAC, which commenced in June 2006 and concluded in November of the same year.

Purpose

The purpose of the secondment was to develop my knowledge and experience of the wider aerospace industry, and specifically to understand the relationship between industry and government, and their support of aerospace research and development activities.

The secondment would also offer the opportunity to develop my communication skills (written and spoken), to report directly to senior level staff, to exercise my initiative, to work with minimal supervision, and to operate in an SME environment.

Secondment Summary
My role within SBAC was to be a Support Officer in the National Aerospace Technology Strategy (NATS) Support Team Executive, within the Engineering & Technology department.

The NATS Support Team Executive comprised of 5 members of staff, including myself, and I reported directly to the Director of Civil Air Transport, Engineering & Technology, Dr Mike Steeden.

One of the key activities during my secondment was performing the Secretariat role to the Aerospace Technology Steering Group (ATSG), which is a group of senior-level aerospace stakeholders from industry, government and academia, who were brought together to implement the National Aerospace Technology Strategy.

In this role I worked closely with the Chairman, Mr Ken Maciver, and was responsible for the organisation, facilitation and reporting (via minutes) of the monthly ATSG meetings. I was also responsible for ensuring that actions were undertaken.

This particular role developed my organisational and time-management skills, as well as my communication skills, especially written communication through taking the minutes and also oral communication through working with senior-level personnel.

In order to develop my written communication skills, Dr Mike Steeden tasked with writing a report (for his eyes only) on the views held by ATSG members on the implementation of NATS, which at the time of writing was a contentious issue and attracted differing views from members.

After submitting a somewhat raw first attempt, and after receiving frank yet constructive advice, I was able to produce a report that sensitively presented the key issues, provided analysis, and that made several recommendations thereon. This exercise greatly developed my report writing skills and overall written communication skills.

During the secondment I was also the point of contact for industry on matters regarding NATS and worked closely with the Programme Coordination Task Force, who are charged with managing the delivery mechanisms of NATS, the Aerospace Innovation Networks and the Aerospace Technology Validation Programmes (such as Environmentally Friendly Engine for example). I also had the opportunity to prepare and deliver presentations to the ATSG and the SBAC Engineering & Technology Board, as well as preparing board-level presentations for senior colleagues.

To conclude, during the secondment I was given the opportunity to work with senior level personnel from the UK aerospace industry, government (DTI) and academia; I was exposed to policy-level meetings, discussion and literature; and I had the privilege of being mentored by Dr Mike Steeden who imparted to me some of his vast and detailed knowledge of industry and government matters during our mentor meetings. Consequently the secondment has fully met my development need and surpassed my expectations, and I have learnt and experienced a great deal about the aerospace industry that will be of great value to me in my career.