Flagship's Managing Director appointed as Chief Operating Officer for VT Group company

Following VT Group’s acquisition of Flagship Training Ltd earlier this month, Flagship’s Managing Director, Ron Sams, has now been appointed to a new role within the VT Group of companies.

VT Flagship has joined VT’s Education and Skills (VTE&S) business and Ron has been appointed as the first Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the expanded company, which now employs over 4,000 skilled personnel and generates turnover of £260m per annum.

In the newly created COO role Ron will spearhead VTE&S’s drive for increased efficiency and effectiveness to benefit its diverse customer base. His responsibilities will include the delivery and ongoing development of operations across VT Flagship and the four other business units which make up VTE&S. Following the acquisition of VT Flagship, VTE&S is now the UK’s largest training, education and skills company, with a unique presence which spans both military and civilian training.

Says Ron; "I am delighted to be joining VTE&S at this exciting time in the company’s development and equally delighted to be retaining my association with VT Flagship and its partner the Royal Navy. "The enlarged VTE&S business has a unique presence spanning military training, vocational training, education, career guidance and associated support services, including facilities management and construction."

Adds Ron; "There are many synergies throughout the enlarged business and we will be looking to fully exploit these to further enhance our capabilities and deliver even better solutions for our customers. "

By sharing our combined knowledge and skills we’ll effectively offer our customers access to the largest defence training organisation in Europe, with solutions which draw upon the best from the military, commercial and educational sectors."

Prior to joining VT Flagship, Ron was the Operations Director at AgustaWestland’s UK facility in Yeovil, Somerset, where he worked with Alan Johnston, CEO of the newly established ship-building and support joint venture, BVT Surface Fleet.

Comments Ron; "Alan and I have worked together for many years and I am looking forward to continuing this association as we both take up our new positions. VT Flagship has a strong relationship with BAE Systems and we wish to build a similar relationship with BVT, which will be one of our major defence customers."

In addition to Ron’s experience in the defence sector, Ron’s career has also included a range of senior overseas appointments. Most recently he was Managing Director of Bosal Automotive, a first tier automotive manufacturer with multiple plants across Southern Africa. In this role Ron’s responsibilities also extended to the company’s Australasian and Brazilian operations^.