Published at 10:23, Wednesday, 18 July 2012

A BAE Systems director spoke to some of the country’s top managers at a prestigious awards event at the House of Commons.

CELEBRATION: From left, BAE Systems director Stuart Godden and chartered manager-qualified shipyard employees Jim Gardiner, Alistair Ives and Alan Robson at the CMI Chartered Manager of the Year 2012 awards ceremony in Westminster SUBMITTED

More than 150 of the UK’s leading lights in management joined MPs and Lords at the CMI Chartered Manager of the Year 2012 awards ceremony in Westminster.

Stuart Godden, BAE Systems Maritime – Submarines engineering and commissioning director, was invited as a guest speaker.

During his address he celebrated the positive impact professionally qualified managers have had on the business since the company began training employees through the Chartered Management Institute Qualification Programme five years ago.

In particular, he referred to employees now working to build the Astute class submarines BAE Systems is constructing for the Royal Navy.

He said: “Designing, building and commissioning nuclear powered submarines is a very complex task involving the coordinated integration of many components, people and processes.

“It requires managers capable of operating in this complex and safety-critical environment. That’s why the professional management qualification offered by CMI forms the cornerstone of the Operations Leadership Development Framework within the business.

“It raises the standard of our leadership and people management, which enables our managers to motivate our teams to deliver our world-class product.

“It also broadens the individual and helps us offer them career development across a range of roles.

“Perhaps the most important thing is that it gives them the latest management and leadership thinking and the confidence to act on what they see.

“As a result they can challenge the traditional way of doing things and improve us as a business.

“So by having that full understanding our management team are better positioned to influence and develop our workforce.”

Eight employees at the shipyard have been qualified up to full CMI chartered manager status in the last two years and a further six are due to complete it later this year.

Since the re-introduction of the Lancaster and Morecambe College delivered programmes in 2008, some 83 people managers have graduated with a further 36 are preparing for the next courses in September.

Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk