Engineering Sector: Skills now & into the future

Terry Buckel

Founder & Chairman, Astute Technical Recruitment Ltd

Terry is the founder and Chairman of Astute, having established the business from scratch in 2006. Starting out in a 1-man office, he successfully grew the business to over 50 people by 2020.

A former Royal Navy Engineer, in 2001 he started his career in Recruitment. With 16 years in business and 21 years in recruitment, Terry has seen the good, bad, and downright ugly of the industry. Having been through a recession, splitting from business partners and resolving numerous employment/client issues, there isn’t much he hasn’t seen and thus has a great deal of experience and knowledge to give back.

A champion of “good recruitment practice”, valuing people, respect and honesty, Terry is focused on ensuring that his staff are treated well and given real opportunity including best-in-class L&D, resulting in excellent customer service and quality, always learning and not afraid of change.

Continuously advocating the use of advanced technology including AI and big data, Terry believes he has a good understanding of most challenges facing APSCo members and can add a positive contribution to APSCo’s future direction. Most importantly, he wants to ensure that recruitment is done properly, and that the industry is viewed professionally.

Alex Christie

Managing Director, Energi People

Alex is the Managing Director of Energi People since its establishment in 2002, and brings over 20 years of experience in the recruitment industry. With a strong desire to provide an independent agency that offers flexibility and a personalised service tailored to your needs, Alex has been instrumental in shaping our approach.

Before transitioning into recruitment in 1999, Alex began his career on the client side, working hands-on in a technical role. This firsthand experience provided him with a profound understanding of how the engineering, design, and construction sectors operate from all perspectives. It forms the foundation of our commitment to becoming industry experts, allowing us to comprehensively comprehend, evaluate, and resource on behalf of our clients both internationally and within the UK.

Becca Gooch

Head of Research, EngineeringUK

Becca Gooch is a researcher with 10 years’ experience researching education, skills, workforce, and diversity. She is currently Head of Research at EngineeringUK, a not-for-profit organisation with a mission to enable more young people from all backgrounds to be informed, inspired and progress into engineering and technology. Becca leads EngineeringUK’s work establishing the composition of the current engineering and technology workforce, future workforce needs and how to address them, and understanding the opinions and experiences of young people’s engagement with STEM subjects and activities. EngineeringUK leads collaborative work across hundreds of organisations to improve the impact of engineering and tech engagement for young people – to help achieve our vision that the UK has the diverse workforce needed for engineering and technology to thrive and to drive economic prosperity, improve sustainability and achieve net zero.