Military is good for business - Intelligence Challenge 2021

 City analysts have pitted their problem-solving skills against each other in a competition designed to bring business and military intelligence together.

The challenge took place virtually on Thursday 15^th April, hosted by Cisco utilising their Webex platform. Cisco is a recognised forces-friendly employer and has made a huge effort to support Defence through their commitment to the Employer Recognition Scheme.

Ten teams from City organisations took part in the annual Intelligence Challenge, where each team came from companies that actively engage with Defence, who have signed the Armed Forces Covenant and are at different stages of the Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS). By practicing military style analysis, these companies had a chance to experience first-hand how transferable skills gained in the armed forces can benefit business.

They were set a challenge by specially trained Intelligence Corps Reservist soldiers, which took the teams through a military scenario, evaluating how an operation had been compromised, reviewing operational intelligence and planning how to disrupt a malign group.

Mentored by soldiers from 3 Military Intelligence Battalion (3 MI Bn), an Army Reserve unit based in the City, participants had to complete their analysis and produce a plan of action which they presented to a task force command board of 3 MI Bn officers and soldiers.

The team from Metro Bank came out on top to claim The Intelligence Challenge Trophy engraved with the Intelligence Corps motto Manui Dat Cognitio Vires – knowledge gives strength to the arm. Metro Bank were recognised with a Silver ERS award in 2020, and are going for Gold later this year.

“Using this as yet another opportunity to learn more about the role of the Reservist, team MetroBank thoroughly enjoyed the challenge whilst learning new transferable skills and techniques which we can take back into business. It was wonderful to see how non-military colleagues from across the company who have never worked together before, could take ownership of their individual roles and then unite behind a common purpose to achieve the mission.  Well done team!” 

Rupert Stevens,Lead Mortgage Product Manager, Metro Bank.

Commanding Officer of 3 MI Bn, Lt Col Marc Bentley,comments on the success of the day; “The Intelligence Challenge is the flagship 3 Military Intelligence Battalion (3 MI Bn) annual employer engagement event in the City. Despite a year of unprecedented challenge to our ways of working, we’ve succeeded in delivering a different type of Challenge in 2021, with the help of Cisco, delivering a bespoke virtual Webex platform. This has proved crucial in allowing the Battalion to continue engaging with our friends and stakeholders in the City. Simply put, these partnerships are essential in ensuring that 3 MI Bn engages, recruits and retains the very best talent across the City, and that employers see the real benefits of employees trained in military intelligence. It showcases the synergies between 3 MI Bn and business, as we hope to build ever stronger links across industry.”

Making that decision to be a forces friendly employer gives you the opportunity to recruit some of the Military’s most experienced minds. Transferable skills gained in military life have time again be proven to provide a mutual benefit to civilian business. Intelligence Challenge 2021 was a great opportunity to show employers how and why military is good for business.