Darren Mason Email and Phone Number

Business Analyst and Product Owner to cross functional Agile teams that build applications for Aerospace & Defence Industry clients (Leonardo, MBDA etc) and deliver continual improvements to Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions for the Ministry of Defence (MOD). My role includes understanding and mapping the ‘as-is’ and ‘to-be’ business landscapes (business problems, processes, gaps, and opportunities), through conducting workshops and interviews to elicit requirements to produce product backlogs (epics and user stories), and to produce supporting material for the development teams (UML activity, class and use case diagrams, domain models, business logic, Figma prototypes etc). I work closely with the Product Managers in also performing the role of Product Owner, through implementing the product vision and managing and prioritising the product backlogs. I hold current SC clearance, valid until 2033.

NTT DATA is a top 10 global IT services provider operating in more than 50 countries and is part of the NTT Group. I fulfilled the roles of Business Analyst and Scrum Master, in which I led various cross-functional teams as a servant leader to deliver complex technical products, reviews, and solutions to the Home Office and Sky as part of their digital transformation programmes. I conducted user and stakeholder interviews, summarised and presented complex information to various stakeholders, and wrote epics and user stories for product backlogs. I also coached and mentored team members, as well as coaching senior managers embarking on Agile ways of working.

Project Manager and Scrum Master for cross functional teams that built applications for Aerospace & Defence Industry clients (Leonardo, MBDA etc) and delivered continual improvements to Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions for the Ministry of Defence (MOD). I was embedded with various cross functional teams acting as the servant leader and Agile coach, whereby I hosted ceremonies (such as daily stand-ups, sprint planning, reviews, and retrospectives), and strived to remove any impediments to ensure that the team were not delayed or distracted. The servant leader role is one I thoroughly enjoy, and I get great satisfaction from helping teams achieve their goals.

My role included conducting witness and suspect interviews, gathering and analysing evidence, and making decisions whether there was a case to answer. I developed strong communication skills to effectively communicate with complainants, bereaved families, and other internal and external stakeholders. I attended scenes of incidents (deaths in custody, shootings, RTIs etc) and post-mortems to assess situations and take appropriate actions to independently preserve evidence.Whilst at the IOPC, I also went on a secondment to perform the role of Project Manager to introduce change across the organisation. I performed the role of Scrum Master and Project Manager to continually enhance business critical systems used across the organisation, including the main bespoke Case Management System.

The foundations for my current skillset were established in the British Army, especially in relation to communication, working under pressure, organisation, and planning. I gained valuable experience as a criminal investigator at an extremely busy military policing unit in Germany. Working in the serious investigations unit, I was the lead investigator on numerous complex cases (e.g., GBHs, sexual assaults and frauds). In 2011, I deployed on an operational tour to Afghanistan attached to the Royal Gurkha Rifles. During the 7-month tour, my primary role was as an instructor and mentor to the Afghanistan National Police; teaching them the necessary skills required to survive and police in Helmand Province (e.g., running vehicle check points and conducting compound/property searches). My time in the military helped me establish my enduring disciplined and hard-working ethos.