Sea change: one Chartered Manager’s journey through the Royal Navy and MOD

With a mother, father and several uncles and aunts in the armed forces, Stuart Linehan CMgr MCMI’s career was written in the stars. That those stars would shine on Stuart as he sailed around the world for over 20 years in the Royal Navy was down to one particularly rich-voiced Uncle.

“Yes, Uncle Kevin,” recalls Stuart. “He would sing naval songs and tell me of life at sea. It was a no-brainer. I was in!”

Stuart’s career has seen him rise through the management ladder both in the Royal Navy, leaving in 2018 as a chief petty officer, and now at the Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) in the Ministry of Defence (MOD), where he works as a project technical authority. 

​​Dstl delivers mission success by providing scientific and technological advantages for the UK’s security and defence. Recent examples of its work include a mussel-like underwater glue to repair wetsuits in extreme conditions, as well as AI threat detection.

The thought bubble

Given military sensitivities Stuart can’t say what area of our national defence he is working on, but the essence of his role is to provide technical support, strategic advice and risk management to ensure programme success.

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“Dstl is the brains behind our nation’s defences,” explains Stuart. “Our work touches on all aspects, from helping troops on operations today to developing tomorrow’s technologies. I translate the requirements that our military partners need and then help our system engineers develop the initial designs and the science around it.”

A key element of Stuart’s role is building the stakeholder base for each project. That means getting the right people in the room, be that from the MOD, the military, industry or academia. 

“I have an innate skill in knowing who the right people are to help build a stakeholder community to deliver success,” he explains. “I start the thought bubble. Who do we need round that table? What are the goals and the outcomes of this project? How do we get from A to Z? I can take a holistic overview of the full process.”

Stuart says his high emotional intelligence (EQ) skills are particularly crucial. 

“When you add more than one person to a room, there can be conflict,” he explains. “I can regulate my own emotions and empathise with how others are feeling. By listening properly to ensure people feel validated, you can avoid conflict and make effective decisions. My EQ and my strong persuasive communications skills were honed in the Royal Navy.”

Self-discipline and respect

Stuart signed up in 1995 after a childhood willingly “being institutionalised” in the Air Cadets and Scouts in his hometown of Blyth, Northumberland.

He started as a junior sonar operator and, in terms of rank, moved from able seaman to leading hand and then chief petty officer.