Inside Look: Working at National Cyber Force

Diversity and inclusion

The National Cyber Force (NCF) is a partnership and, by its very nature, derives its greatest strength from the diversity of skills and thought. Each organisation that makes up the NCF relies on their people having a vast array of skills and backgrounds.

It is critical that our workforce represents the communities we serve, and our people are at the core of the NCF. But don't just take it from us, here's what some of our exceptional people had to say:

Daniel, GCHQ, working for NCF

After dropping out of university in 2010, I worked as an Instrument Technician for a few years before joining an IT department in 2014. I had no prior experience but learned on the job and slowly built up my competency and responsibilities. After 2 years, I decided to go back to university to get a degree in cyber security, so I enrolled in an Ethical Hacking bachelor's degree. Shortly after I started my course, I was advised to enrol in the CyberFirst scheme, which offered a generous annual bursary and ultimately, I applied for a role within GCHQ upon graduation.

I currently work within cyber operations as a security specialist, working with colleagues and partners to gather intelligence and enable other teams. The work is incredibly interesting, challenging and requires us to stay on top of the latest developments in our respective fields. We're given a lot of time to develop new skills and the latitude to approach problems in whichever way we think makes the most sense. The people here are diverse, driven and welcoming; it's a great team and I'm proud to be a part of it.

Isobel, GCHQ, working for NCF

I started my career as a linguist in GCHQ in 2020, just a few months before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Despite the difficulties of that time, I quickly came to feel at home in GCHQ and spent 4 fascinating years in this operational role. I was able to gather brilliant experience while settling into a brand-new environment.

I then took a role in NCF as Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Lead. This involved being creative in designing and delivering initiatives to make NCF a more inclusive place to work. I got the chance to work closely with people in all sorts of jobs, from a variety of backgrounds, and from all of our partner organisations. I was energised by their shared enthusiasm for making NCF the best it can be.

I have since stepped up to become Head of EDI for NCF, where I'm required to think strategically, and take responsibility and accountability for the delivery of our EDI strategy. I also report to, guide, and work with leaders across NCF to drive forward positive changes. It's a challenging, busy, and rewarding job, where I can see tangible change because of my team's hard work.

I've been amazed by the richness of the partnership and have benefitted from the diverse perspectives our partners bring. NCF offers an unrivalled opportunity to learn how other organisations overcome challenges and approach tasks, enabling us to become more than the sum of our parts by sharing experience and best practice. To a greater extent than anywhere else I have worked, curiosity is encouraged here, and my colleagues have consistently gone above and beyond to answer my questions in a way I can understand.

I could not have asked for a more supportive working environment; here I have the freedom to be creative and take calculated risks while knowing there's always help available if I need it. I've been empowered to work at the edge of my comfort zone, which has helped me to learn, grow, and develop my career. I'll soon be moving to the new headquarters in Samlesbury. I can't wait to see what exciting opportunities NCF will present in Lancashire, and where my career will take me.

Flight Lieutenant David, Royal Air Force, working for NCF

I left my job as a teacher and joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) as an Education and Training Officer over 7 years ago, becoming an expert in training management and learning and development consultancy. My experience across the air domain ventured into logistics, policing, administration and flying training before broadening into the cyber domain.

I am now in the National Cyber Force Cyber Training and Education team, analysing requirements for current and future cyber roles, designing and delivering learning solutions to train and upskill NCF people. I am by no means a technical individual, but I meet with some of the best operators in this field regularly to understand their requirements and turn them into tangible solutions, for current and future problems.

For me, the NCF has been a thoroughly open and diverse organisation that has welcomed me, and anybody across the partnership that I've seen, with open arms. We understand the nature of a partnership and encourage new ideas, or the use of existing ideas, to keep moving forward. We value people from all backgrounds, including non-technical backgrounds, as demonstrated in my case. For an organisation that has only been around since 2020, it feels modern, respectful, inclusive and the sense of purpose whilst I have been here, has been second to none.

Ellie, GCHQ, working for NCF

During my GCSE's, GCHQ visited my school to do a talk on the opportunities available at the organisation and I was hooked! I tailored two of my four A-Levels to focus on STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subjects. After school, I took a 12-month computing course at college prior to applying for the GCHQ Apprenticeship scheme. This enabled me to gain further insight into computing in general, which I knew would give me a good starting position on the scheme.

My final placement on the apprenticeship led me to the National Cyber Force, and I chose to come back to it for my first permanent position. It's a fascinating area of work and offers a wide variety of roles, from hands on work to more strategic elements, as well as the chance to work with a variety of customers, all contributing to national security.

Being part of this mission makes me feel proud and excited to be part of the future journey that the National Cyber Force is on. It also offers me further opportunities to utilise my STEM skills and experience, including work on outreach programmes with schools, getting involved in initiatives like Women in Engineering, Science and Technology festivals and EDI initiatives. There are so many opportunities for personal growth through leadership development programmes - I'm excited for what the future has in store as I continue to develop my career in this Force.

Captain Robert, Royal Navy, working for NCF

I joined the Royal Navy as a Warfare Officer over 30 years ago, becoming an expert in electronic warfare and specialising in navigating and directing the fight aspects of war ships. My experience of naval warfare, the nautical environment, military telecommunications, and cyber operations has allowed me a unique insight into how the maritime domain overlaps with cyber.

As such, I have spent the last eight years in four roles within the cyber domain. From managing the delivery of the National Offensive Cyber Programme to now commanding the military workforce contribution to the NCF as one of the Navy's first cyber practitioners - a long way from building my first computer at the age of 12.

I'm currently working in a team focussed on turning the nation's requirements for cyber capabilities into viable, tangible outcomes for the UK Government. Whether that is tackling terrorism, preventing cyberspace being used as a platform for serious organised crime, or supporting military operations on the ground. My role ensures the NCF's offering is integrated as part of national level campaigns, giving the UK the strategic edge needed to remain a world-leading and responsible cyber power.

Stuart, GCHQ working for NCF

I've always been fascinated by the latest cutting-edge technology. Before working for the intelligence services, I joined the police and worked my way up from a Constable on the beat to specialising in digital forensics - looking at suspects' electronic devices for evidence. I loved it but wanted to see what cutting-edge really looked like which is why I applied to work in cyber.

I didn't go to university after leaving school and my career so far has been led by a natural curiosity, and that's true of all my colleagues who are joining the National Cyber Force. They come from all kinds of backgrounds. You have deep technical experts at the heart of it all, as well as a former supermarket branch manager, a primary school teacher and a fire fighter. The one thing we all have in common is an open mind, a hunger to learn and a shared goal of keeping the country safe - seeing both the threats and opportunities for national security from emerging technology.

As a police officer I was immensely proud to help people on a personal level. Today, as part of this unique team at the National Cyber Force, I'm part of a force for good on a global scale - that's cutting-edge.

Olivia, MOD Civil Servant, working for NCF

My cyber journey started at university when, whilst looking for an escape from my dissertation on the American War of Independence, I took a new module on the use of cyber in modern conflicts. I was intrigued but thought this type of work was only for those with specialist computer skills and thought nothing further of it when I joined the civil service. Within three years I found myself promoting UK cyber companies overseas and now I am developing the UK's National Cyber Force international relations with our partners and close allies.

The fact that I am here with no technological background demonstrates that the National Cyber Force, like the UK, seeks people with diverse thoughts, backgrounds and experiences. This diversity brings a 'whole of society' mindset to the National Cyber Force, enabling us to overcome the threats that confront us in line with the UK's democratic values as well as our domestic and international law.

The UK is an important global nation, and with the National Cyber Force, it is also a responsible and leading cyber power.