Chris Elder Email & Phone Number

London, England, United Kingdom

Europe

London, United Kingdom

Manchester, United Kingdom

13 Air Assault Support Regiment, Colchester, United Kingdom

Appointed as the Regimental Information Systems Officer to manage a complex array of secure IT, tactical communication systems and specialist personnel to support wider operations. Since arrival has worked on numerous projects to enhance operational capability, some of which are outlined below.• Successfully bid for c. £3m of new vehicles, secure IT and communications equipment to support a strategic capability enhancement for the deployable headquarters. Project managed from planning and design to testing and delivery on a large multi-national military exercise. A high level of complexity due to the vast number of communications links required to be built and tested from initiation to deployment within a strict 6 month window. Concise planning, requirements analysis and strong stakeholder engagement ensured the project was delivered on time and within scope, despite key issues arising.• Managed the implementation of a new business information enhancements project to better exploit Army information, communication and collaborative working. A comprehensive PID was produced, including a communications plan, information management plan, risk management strategy and project plan. Established an IHub team to monitor and report progress against key milestones set out in the plan, such as the adoption of a new sharepoint site, records management system and new IM protocols. Managed risks to project through a centralised database and escalated issues when appropriate. Following the latest external compliance inspection, the organisation received accolades for ‘best practice’ in governance and information management procedures across a wider Brigade of c. 8,000 personnel and 12 similar sized units.• Developed new policy documentation to improve IT security procedures, including access requests, incident reporting and response and accounting procedures for secure IT and cryptographic material.

Communications Information Systems Division

CIS management courses for Officers in preparation for employment as Regimental Information Systems Officers, responsible for all elements of CIS within a Regiment including the skills and knowledge to ensure system integration with other Formation assets.Following the RISO course, achieved further advanced CIS courses qualifications as follows:Defence Signals OfficerDefence Information Manager Defence IT Security OfficerDefence Cryptographic Custodian

Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Operations Officer to a secondary supply depo (11 GS Squadron) with c. 150 logistic personnel, responsible managing and controlling all resources (inc. vehicles, equipment, personnel) and a large stores account, supporting 7,000 personnel and 1,700 vehicles across the wider Brigade.• Project managed the disbandment of the unit, following the Army 2020 restructuring programme. Produced a project plan to break the closure into manageable stages, reducing impact on wider operational activities. • Managed through to project closure, ensuring additional work was cleared and follow-up actions completed before seeking final authority to close. This included the closure of the supply account and removal of all logistic IT systems during the final stage, prior to deployment on operations to Afghanistan.• Managed the training, deployment and recovery of 100 personnel to and from Operations to Afghanistan.

Helmand Province, Afghanistan

Operation HERRICK 17 - appointed the head of UK logistics advisor teams, attached to 1 Scots Regiment in Afghanistan, responsible for providing leadership and direction to multi-skilled teams, delivering various projects to enhance Afghan National Army’s (ANA) operational logistic capacity and capability.• Conducted a capability assessment and analysis on the medical, transport, communications and maintenance elements of the ANA to identify and prioritise projects requirements. Liaised with key stakeholders including govt agencies, US Marine Corps, and MOD to provide resources and support for projects.• Initiated a $.05m project to renovate the maintenance workshop, including additional infrastructure, manpower and tooling to increase ANA capacity to repair vehicles. Production levels rose over 150% following project delivery, providing more vehicles and equipment to support ANA operations.• Analysed process and accounting procedures throughout the Afghan National Army logistic supply chain and identified shortfalls and corruption loops holes, through a direct analysis of fuel distribution. Implemented new accounting processes which were authorised at the strategic level and adopted throughout the wider Afghan National Army as ‘best practice’, with significant cost savings to a stretched operational budget.• Produced weekly highlight reports and attended daily update meetings to report progress, risks, issues and future plans, in order to maintain support and wider situational awareness.• Success of project initiatives led to a significant increase ANA capability to operate independently of UK advisor support, leading to a 55% reduction in UK advisors required for Operation HERRICK 18.

Hullavington, Chippenham

Senior Training Manager for an organisation over 700 multi-capability personnel, responsible for the planning of all military and specialist training to support individual and professional development. Managed a team of 10 instructors, responsible for the training of all military personnel prior to deployment on operations in line with MOD standards of readiness.

Germany And Iraq

Direct line manager of 45 specialist logistic soldiers in 2 Logistic Support Regiment, RLC, based in Guersloh, Germany. Responsible for all staff personal and professional development, training and management and maintenance of a 30 vehicle fleet.Deployed to Iraq (Op TELIC 12), working in the operations room as a Watchkeeper, later gaining substantial operational experience by deploying on several patrols throughout the UK area of operations around Basra. 2009 - trained for and deployed on London Public Duties, as the Subaltern to the Queens Guard at Buckingham Palace. Prior to next posting, gained valuable experience as the Intelligence Officer for the headquarters planning team.

Deepcut

Completed a specialist course encompassing all aspects of military logistics from the operational to the strategic level. Developed knowledge and skills in complex logistic planning on operations, for a large range of stores/materiel, spanning the UK base to the front line. In addition, the course encompassed the integration of asset tracking, IT logistic management systems and vehicle fleet management and maintenance planning.

Camberley, Uk

Commissioned from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2007, following an arduous 12 month course to develop an elite standard of command, leadership, management in a high-paced, physically and mentally challenging environment.Commissioned into the Royal Logistics Corps (RLC) in December 2015 and subsequently posted to the RLC Troop Commanders course, to enhance logistic and military knowledge.

Salisbury

UK Distribution Manager - Responsible for the annual distribution of 15,000 tonnes of processed steel around the UK and Europe. Reduced annual logistics costs by 25% through engagement with more competitive haulers UK wide and agreeing rates as part of their ‘back load’ plan.