My day-to-day role at RWE is a Wind Farm Manager, managing a team of four technicians and responsible for the operations, maintenance and safety across three wind farms in Northern England, totalling 75 MW of installed capacity. 

I am also currently Reservist, serving in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. 

Having served five years as a regular soldier before leaving the Army, I made the decision to carry on my career as a Reservist, working at RWE. This allowed me to further my career outside of the Armed Forces, whilst being supported by RWE to continue serving on a part-time basis through additional paid leave. 

I now have the best of both worlds, with a great benefits package that has taken me across the world – from Africa to North America and Canada. 

A Reservist should be a confident leader, a forward thinker, physically fit and robust, with great communication skills.

But importantly, you can join the Reserve Forces with no previous military or specialist skills, as you’ll be fully trained whilst getting paid in the process.

There are so many transferable skills I have that I utilise both in my role at RWE, and as a Reservist. Our military training is amongst the best in the world, and has served me well managerially, having worked with people from all different backgrounds and levels of seniorities. This is also the case from a technical perspective, where I have worked on military equipment such as armoured vehicles and weapons that most people will never have been close to. 

I couldn’t recommend RWE enough with regards to the support that they give their Reservists. We are entitled to paid additional leave each year, which allows us to dedicate sufficient time to our training. We also have special dispensation to be released on leave at short-notice to pursue military activity and operations. 

On top of this, RWE also has an Armed Forces Reserve Policy which supports our training and reinforces the ability to be flexible within my role.  This includes additional paid leave for Reservist employees, comprehensive support during mobilisation and demobilisation phases, and development of a Armed Forces Network for Reservists, Veterans and spouses/partners fostering community and support.

RWE promotes a good support network, and I’m fortunate enough to have a strong team around me that I can rely on to step-in to support whilst I’m away. 

This combined has allowed me to seamlessly balance both aspects of my job. 

I would wholeheartedly encourage anyone who is considering signing-up to be a Reservist to go ahead and do it – whether this be adventure training, technical training or military training. 

The Army Reserves will give you opportunities and experiences that you wouldn’t find anywhere else in a civilian role, and RWE will support you to do this whilst gaining excellent career progression within the company itself. 

From my perspective, you really have got nothing to lose!