What is an Ex-Forces Programme?

The FDM Ex-Forces programme is an opportunity for those who have served in the forces to transition into a civilian career in either business or tech. Our award-winning programme is run by ex-service personnel who understand your background and are committed to support your journey.

We recognise the diverse skills and experience that ex-forces personnel can offer to the business world. Our programme is tailored to develop your existing skills and enable you to launch a successful career beyond the forces. We support you at every step of the programme – from instructor-led training, to interview preparation and ongoing mentorship.  

Our work in providing training for ex-forces jobs has seen us awarded with the Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Award and recognised as Employer of The Year at the British Ex-Forces Awards. We are long term partners with the Ex-Forces charity Walking With The Wounded, who we raise money for every year. 

Who is Eligible to Apply to an Ex-Forces Programme?

Our programme is designed for veterans, by veterans. We welcome service leavers, military veterans, serving reservists, ex-police personnel, and their spouses to apply to our programme. We know that your forces background will have equipped you with a range of transferrable skills and valuable life experiences. 

Our clients are looking for talented individuals with the skills you have gained within the forces. These include soft skills like leadership, teamwork, and risk and change management, as well as any technical skills you may have acquired. At the end of the training period, we ensure that you’re ready to take on the best available jobs for ex-forces.  

What Courses are Offered on the Ex-Forces Programme?

We currently offer two main pathways on our Ex-Forces Programme:

• Ex-Forces Programme
• Advanced Ex-Forces Programme

Ex-Forces Programme

The Ex-Forces Programme is designed for military and police veterans from any service or rank, who are looking to start a new career pathway. We provide you with industry-recognised training through our FDM online Academy, followed by live project experience with one or more of our blue-chip international clients across a variety of sectors.
Training durations can range from 8 to 14 weeks in either Technical or Business specialisations. Both pathways start with Foundation Training.

For the Technical Pathway this includes:

• Professional Skills
• Excel
• SQL
• Unix
• Web apps

For the Business Pathway, Foundation Training includes:

• Professional Skills
• Business Foundation
• Excel

After completing the foundation training in the Technical Pathway, you will move to specific training schemes including:

• Technical Operations
• Software Development
• Software Testing (Access to ISTQB Certification)
• Business Intelligence
• Cloud Engineering
• Data Engineering
• Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
• Salesforce Developer

You could find yourself designing a new app as a Software Developer, assessing the strength of an online banking tool as a Software Tester or managing stakeholders during the planning stages of a new digital transformation project as a Project Manager. 

The Software Development Lifecycle is varied and prevalent in all major global businesses, meaning you will be gaining experience in a highly recognised and fast-growing field. 

After completing the foundation training in the Business Pathway, you will move to more specific training schemes including:

• Business Analysis
• Project Management
• Risk, Regulation and Compliance
• Salesforce Analyst

Placement

At the end of the training period, you will be placed with one of our prestigious clients across Banking and Finance, Retail, Insurance, and the Public Sector. This two-year period is an opportunity for you to get hands-on experience in each of these sectors and gain valuable industry knowledge.

At the end of the two years, you can become a Senior FDM Consultant and advance your career with one or more of our clients. You can also transfer to the client and become a permanent member of their team. Alternatively, you can pursue your own career path.

Advanced Ex-Forces Programme

Our Advanced Programme is designed for those who have achieved any rank from Senior NCO to Officer and are looking for a specialist career in Project Management and Delivery. The programme is tailored for military and police veterans with demonstrable leadership and management experience. This is a 5-week course that is divided into week-long modules to cover:

• Stakeholder management 
• Risk management 
• Change management 
• Elevator pitches 
• CV writing  
• Interview techniques  
• Budget process 
• Introduction to business analysis  
• Certification in Prince2 and Scrum Master

The 5-week training programme will aim to provide you with professional and technical skills to advance your existing skillset and tailor them for the demands of managing projects within the Software Development Lifecycle. 

The first week of the Advanced Pathway covers a range of Professional Skills including effective communication, organisational overview, project lifecycle, budget, presentation skills, configuration management and more. This module focuses on the key components of effective communication – from documentation writing to stakeholder management and elevator pitches. 

The second week covers Project Management Tools where you can get to grips with key Microsoft platforms such as MS Project, Visio and Excel. 

In the third week you learn all the phases of Waterfall Project management and acquire your PRINCE2 certification.

Week four will provide an introduction to Agile Methodologies and Framework. Expand your knowledge of Agile and acquire your Scrum Master certification. 

In the final week of the Advanced Pathway, you will work on a Final Project Assignment. Simulate a live project environment by applying the skills and methods learnt throughout training. 

Read some of our Ex-Forces stories:

• Transition to a civilian life
• From Royal navy to Scrum Master
• Royal Marines to Project Manager

When Do Ex-Forces Programmes Open?

Most companies offer ex-forces programmes once or twice a year. At FDM, applications to our Ex-Forces Programme are open year-round. Our rolling start dates provide the flexibility of applying at any time during the year.

How to Apply to an Ex-Forces Programme?

Application to our Ex-Forces Programme is a 4-step process.

• Step 1: Apply online by submitting your cv here
• Step 2: A member of our Recruitment team will call you to discuss the programme and your career aspirations.
• Step 3: Have an online assessment
• Step 4: Final Interview

For more information register for an Insight Event.

Here’s some useful information to help you with your Ex-Forces Programme application:

• How to prepare for an interview
• 12 questions to ask after an interview
• FDM interview process and questions

What are the Benefits of the FDM Ex-Forces Programme?

• We recruit all year round making it simple for you to start your second career at a time that works for you. Other ex-forces programmes have one or two starts per year. With FDM, there’s much more flexibility.
• Our Ex-Forces Programme is run by for those who have had military careers with the right attitude and sensibility to assess your skill set and aspirations and guide you on your career journey.
• You will be fully supported by our team throughout your career with us. Our consultants receive support from our Consultant Experience Partners while working on-site with our clients. Our Consultant Peer Support (CPS) Programme introduces new FDMers to those already working on-site, to help them settle into their new role.
• FDM actively supports the Armed Forces Reservist community and our Reservist Support programme allows an additional two weeks of paid leave to attend annual camps.
• Our online wellbeing portal provides a range of helpful resources, including professional guidance and advice. Consultants also have support from Wellbeing Ambassadors throughout the FDM community.

How Does the Training Part of the Ex-Forces Programme Work?

The FDM Ex-Forces Programme begins with expert training, designed to reconnect you with your existing skills, refresh your knowledge, update your terminology and equip you with industry-recognised qualifications. It covers professional skills, as well as business and tech specific training, and our agile training style ensures you are prepared for any career path ahead of you.

Once you’ve completed training, you will have the opportunity to showcase your skills working on-site with our leading clients. Many ex-forces consultants go into Business Analysis or Project Management roles. Our dedicated recruitment team can steer you towards the right pathway depending on your skills and experience.

The training is led by specialist trainers and will help you to develop practical and professional skills to prepare you for the workplace.

What Makes FDM Group’s Ex-Forces Programme Different From the Rest?

FDM Group is a global leader in the recruit, train and deploy sector, specialising in technology.  We work in partnership with our clients to help with their technology projects and to fill specialty skills gaps in their teams. We look at a broad range of factors during our application process, not just degree type or university. We focus on the potential of candidates and what they can bring to a role to make a real difference.

What sets FDM’s Ex-Forces Programme apart is that it provides a much greater opportunity to work with industry-leading clients than most other programmes. With FDM, you have the opportunity to gain invaluable commercial experience with our prestigious clients and kick-start an exciting career.

Are you interested in training for a career in business or tech? You can do so on our award-winning Ex-Forces Careers Programme.

Here are some useful resources for ex-forces personnel looking to transition into a civilian career:

• What Can I Do after the Military
• 5 Transferrable Skills from the Military to Scrum Master Training
• What is Upskilling and Reskilling