Charities - Case Studies

Neil Morrison

An interesting and, for the Service leaver instructive, account of career change comes from ex-Lieutenant Colonel Neil Morrison, via the Career Transition Partnership; and it clearly shows that determination and good steering can lead to a very satisfactory result. He also draws some useful conclusions from his experiences.

Leaving the Army’s Royal Logistic Corps just over a year ago, the 55-year-old transport specialist had been awarded an OBE, and had translated his experience into a Fellowship of the Chartered Management Institute. He now rates the skills he developed including ‘leadership; people management; budget and corporate planning; flexibility and adaptability; readiness to accept unusual challenges and circumstances; the “get it done” attitude; written, oral and presentational skills; and patience and understanding;’ as important.

A Career Transition Workshop focussed on ‘change, interview techniques, CV writing and personal support,’ although the suggested salary expectation was low; whilst an IOSH (Managing Safely) course at the Resettlement Training Centre was ‘well run and useful.

‘I approached job-hunting in a very calculated way and as a job in its own right, working nine hours a day. I only targeted the areas that I knew interested me and only applied for jobs that were at least an 85% fit with my CV. That approach delivered ten interviews and one job from 25 applications in five months; and I was pretty happy about that.

‘I started as Chief Executive of VETAID on 2nd April 2007. It is a small Scottish-based NGO that delivers its projects in sub-Saharan East Africa. Its role is to use animals to lift people out of extreme poverty and provide them with sustainable futures. I am ultimately responsible for all aspects of the business, but particularly for its growth, development and financial stability. I feel lucky and privileged to have found a position that allows me to use the skills the Army gave me for the benefit of some of the poorest people on earth.

‘The small charity sector is particularly challenging since we are reliant to a major extent on public donations. Maintaining income levels is therefore a constant challenge, compared to the MoD where budgets, by and large, were known at the beginning of the financial year. However, the rewards of working in an organisation that is lifting hundreds of thousands of people out of extreme poverty are more than compensation and at least as gratifying as those of soldiering. I am still getting used to the very different attitudes to loyalty in the civilian work environment.

‘I took over an organisation ripe for financial and organisational development and, so far, I am meeting my targets for improvement and change. Initially, the nine UK staff were highly sceptical and apprehensive about having an ex-Army officer in charge, but I believe that their preconceptions have altered considerably over the past seven months. They now all accept the need for change and that they must contribute positively and fully towards it. With their committed support I have produced a three-year business plan; bought into and largely written by the key staff, including the senior staff in Africa where we employ about 140 people. Financial controls and competence have also been strengthened.

‘Despite the considerable additional work and pressure, I feel fortunate in having been given the opportunity to take positive steps from the outset to reshape a hugely worthwhile organisation and put in place the foundations for future growth. And it really is a hugely worthwhile organisation because it benefits over a million of the poorest people in Africa annually and provides them with a sustainable future. I have seen this at first hand during the three trips I have made so far to our projects in Kenya, Tanzania and Somaliland. They are intensely humbling and inspiring experiences in equal measure, and motivate me enormously. On one trip, I spent three days living with the Masai, and before I left, they made me a village elder.

‘I suppose that one of the real lessons I have learned is how impressed people seem by what most would deem routine work, such as solving of problems without hours of agonising and discussion. I also believe that identifying and sticking to clear job preferences, effective CV writing, thorough research for interview and not pitching too low are keys to success.

‘In my first five months I had half a day off and worked several weekends, so I really looked forward to my holiday at the end of September as I cannot recall being as exhausted for many years. But I love it and it is hugely worthwhile, despite considerable frustrations. I am very happy with my lot; I have an inspirational, humbling and hugely satisfying job that presents highly worthwhile and fulfilling challenges.’

Published December 07