Military Veterans recognised for their business achievements
ARTICLES
Sponsored by Quest, the British Ex-Forces in Business Awards is a new awards programme that identifies business role models for Service leavers, to support them during resettlement and promote the value of military-gained skills in the wider UK workforce. Here we check out this year’s inaugural shortlisted candidates.
The British Ex-Forces in Business Awards, held in association with Amazon Web Services (AWS), is the largest celebration of ex-military personnel in the UK workforce, and the employers that support current and former members of the British Armed Forces. The awards are dedicated to providing a much-needed platform for uncovering and promoting the achievements of ex-military personnel who are now excelling in the business world, presenting them as important role models for current Service leavers.
Each year, more than 16,000 Service men and women leave the military. Despite having developed many transferable qualities that are in demand in the business world, some still find the process of resettling to civilian life and finding a place in the wider UK workforce a challenge.
The awards ceremony, due to take place in London’s De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms on 17 May, will highlight these adaptable skills by shining a light on the business achievements they have helped enable, and recognise the organisations that have supported Service leavers.
The high-profile ceremony will gather hundreds of business leaders to reveal and honour the winners, as well as bringing together top companies, military personnel, politicians, journalists and other stakeholders to raise awareness of resettlement issues, encourage the development of ex-Forces employment schemes and promote the significant value that military-gained skills can provide to the UK economy if better utilised across the workforce.
Says Gavin Jackson, UK managing director at AWS, ‘We are thrilled to see so many talented military Veterans recognised for their outstanding achievements in business. We find that many of the qualities that are foundational to military service are invaluable for our own organisation. Hiring transitioning military Veterans and military spouses is a fantastic opportunity for any company to grow its talent pool, and we are proud to support the British Ex-Forces in Business Awards, which extol the virtues of these men and women.’
The awards attracted more than 250 nominations and include categories such as Business Leader of the Year, Employer of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, Innovator of the Year, Rising Star of the Year, Woman of the Year, Young Leader of the Year and Lifetime Achievement.
The ceremony will be presented by journalist and broadcaster Julia Hartley-Brewer, who will welcome former SAS soldier and bestselling author Andy McNab as a guest speaker as well as entertainment from the Military Wives Choir. Those presenting awards on the evening include General Sir Mike Jackson, who headed the British Army as it entered the Iraq War in 2003, and Falklands War hero Simon Weston CBE.
As well as Amazon Web Services, whose AWS re:Start programme equips Service leavers with the latest software development and cloud computing technologies to perform technology roles, other sponsors of the awards include FDM Group, Kuehne + Nagel, PwC, Santander and Transport for London. Soldier On! has been selected as charity partner and Quest is supporting as media partner.
Ben Rossi, journalist and founder of the British Ex-Forces in Business Awards, comments: ‘Service men and women develop qualities that are easily transferable to roles in business, yet many employers fail to recognise this or are deterred by common misconceptions. Recognising these attributes and doing more to recruit, train and generally support military Veterans is not only the right thing to do, but is also vital to the prosperity of our economy. We were overwhelmed by the talent on display in the nominations received for the awards, and we look forward to recognising this unique and admirable group of people on 17 May.’
The finalists for the inaugural British Ex-Forces in Business Awards – the largest ever celebration of military Veterans in the UK workforce – were revealed last month. Here’s the shortlist in full …
British Ex-Forces in Business Awards finalists
Advocate of the Year
Chris Coghlan, Bibimoney
David Bruce, Global Cloud Xchange
Hugh Andree, ForceSelect
John Chantry, Barclays
Mark Parr, KPMG
Neil Porter, BAM
Richard Quellyn-Roberts, Mitmark
Business Leader of the Year
David Wilkins MBE, Goldman Sachs
Karl Havard, PA Consulting Group
Marcus James, CBRE
Mark Carnaghan, 2 Sisters Food Group
Mark Taylor, Taylor Consulting Group
Robert Hughes-Penney, Rathbone Brothers
Scott Lane, Day Webster
Scott Porter, Top Conker
Employer of the Year
Balfour Beatty
Deloitte
Fieri
Jaguar Land Rover
Siemens
Transport for London
Yodel
Entrepreneur of the Year
Daryl Flack, BlockPhish
Gavin Lumsden, Essential Teaching UK
Guy Richardson, EIGER Performance
Kevin Jefcoate, Blackhawk Network
Richard Turner, Turner Tech Consulting
Steve McCarthy, Hansei Technology
Stuart Pearce, SMARTech Energy
Tony Knights, Knights Group Worldwide
Innovator of the Year
Che Armstrong Chingang, HSBC
Haig Tyler, Herbert Smith Freehills
John Flexman, Norton Rose Fulbright
Matthew Hopkinson, Didobi
Nicholas Mazzei, BT
Richard Gill, Drone Defence
Simon Davies, Spectra Group
Tony Reeves, Microsoft
Inspiration of the Year
Alex MacEwen, BlackRock
Ally Musthan, Artisan People
Christopher McDonald, Network Rail
Daniel Richards, Academies Enterprise Trust
Darren Smith, Curbside Gaming
Gareth Fulton, Experian
Paul Bensley, Tarmac Building Products
Rory Mackenzie, RM Speaking
Lifetime Achievement
Andrew Whitehorn, Workplace Solutions
Collin Singer, Wagtail UK
Craig Summers, Sky News
David Dent, Parexel International
Dr Jon Lamonte, Transport for Greater Manchester
Gary Stockton, Komankra
Julian Knight, Dynamic Capital Management
Major Scott Kirkwood, Advocate Design
William McTavish Martin-Grayston, Sovereign FM
New Service Leaver of the Year
Adam Meyer, Awareness Response Training
Ben Davis, Barclays Investment Bank
Daniel Frost, Marks and Spencer
Iain Church, Moringa Miracles
Mark Willis, Goldman Sachs
Richard Shepherd, Bring The Game Over
Thomas Varty, JP Morgan
Outstanding Achiever of the Year
Andrew MacLeod, Hear Their Cries
Andy Lewis, Cadent
Craig Henshaw, MedaPhor
Darren Holmes, Wates
Edward Osborne, Virtualstock
Jordan Wylie, JWC International
Steve Marshall, Aldi
Steven Higgs, Mezzanine International
Rising Star of the Year
Damon Tyler, NHS Calderdale CCG
David Edgar, Barclays
James Randall, Siemens
James Stafford Allen, Moody’s Investors Service
Jamie Wood, Harniss
Lee Leyland, CIS Security
Mark Wilson, ConocoPhillips
Morgan Scrase, Rarden Safety Solutions
Role Model of the Year
Craig Dunbar, Scania
Daisy Coleman, Coleman Racing
Jim Mathieson, Shell
John Allwood, Lead Forensics
Neil Denton, Home Office
Nick Onslow, Russell Ulyatt
Rowena Fell, EY
Sean Molino, Forces Fitness
Service Leaver of the Year
James Hawker, KPMG
Justin Jones, Thomsons Online Benefits
Lee Whitworth, A&E Harmonious Compliance Training
Pete Thornton, Bidfood
Peter Speight, Howdens Joinery
Raoul Mooyaart, Korn Ferry Hay Group
Scott Hardisty, Pirtek
Stephen Childs, Debenhams
Team Leader of the Year
Bernard McPhail, Integral
Chris Hancock, Multrees Investor Services
Colin Sellars, Cornwall Council
Darren Lucas, Lambeth College
Gareth Evans, Cisco
Gary Moore, Annodata
Michael Ellul, Encon Insulation
Tim Eastwood, UBS
Woman of the Year
Angela Owen, Women in Defence UK and PA Consulting Group
Caroline Neil, RPS Partnership
Gemma Gardner, Holistic Dreamz Consultancy
Jane Wainwright, PwC
Rebecca Halliwell-Coutts, Foran Solutions
Sam Smith, KellyOCG
Young Leader of the Year
Adam Ottway, Ecolog International
Benjamin Bobroff, BlackRock
Christopher Parkes, Julius Rutherfoord & Co
Jamal Abbasi, UK Government’s Stabilisation Unit
James Bromfield, Barclays International Banking
Jon-Paul Brett, Burberry
Linsey Vance, Datapipe
Sudershan Dadlani, Kinara International
To find out more, visit: www.exforcesinbusiness.co.uk
