Colleagues from Ellis Jones Solicitors with army trainers from the Royal Wessex Yeomanry at the Army Reserve Centre in Bournemouth.
Twenty junior colleagues at a south coast legal firm swapped their office desks for a hands-on team building day run by professional soldiers from the British Army Reserve.
The lawyers, trainees and paralegals from Ellis Jones Solicitors completed military-themed activities designed to challenge them while encouraging confidence in problem solving, leadership and ‘followership’.
Badged as ‘Operation Team Build’, the experience featured against-the-clock assignments that required participants to work together to pool ideas on tactics, delegate tasks and take responsibility.
Activities tested both physical skills and logical thinking. They included a subarctic survival scenario and a ‘mission possible’ exercise that involved performing 24 command tasks in 45 minutes.
The day was organised by the Royal Wessex Yeomanry, the UK’s part-time tank regiment, and held at their centre on Wallisdown Road, Bournemouth.
A unique unit, they are based across the South West and offer the opportunity to train on the Challenger 2 tank alongside civilian day jobs and studies.
The day was co-ordinated from the Ellis Jones’ side by Senior Associate Solicitor Conor Maher, a commissioned officer in the Army Cadet Force with the rank of Captain.
Conor said: “We invited junior team members from different departments to challenge themselves on some of the elements you would find on an army leadership course.
“They have now gained a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses, leadership styles, capacity for critical thinking and how they go about problem solving.
“At the same time, it gave our team some fascinating, first-hand insight into the mission-critical decisions that reservists and other armed forces personnel have to make in what can often be life and death situations on the frontline.”
Among the Ellis Jones team members taking part were Trainee Solicitors Tayla Baird and Suzi Daver.
Tayla, who is based in the firm’s London office and works in the Family Law department, said she found the day “engaging, motivating and really good fun from start to finish”.
She added: “The activities and presentations were thorough and worked really well. Aside from getting to know colleagues better, working in teams and taking on challenges, it was eye opening to find out more about the army and all that there is you can do by getting involved.”
Suzi, a member of Ellis Jones’ Dispute Resolution team, said: “I found the time-constraint activities the most challenging.
“Liaising with team mates, delegating tasks, time-management and understanding what was set with a time pressure was quite intense.”
Tamzin Bouzad, who is on a legal placement in the firm’s Business Services team, said: ‘The army reservists who held the event for us did an excellent job in initiating team tasks and building our skill sets.
“They went above and beyond to give us a great day. Everyone had such a positive attitude and deserve a huge thank-you.”
Major Jake Meyer BEM VR RFGS, Officer Commanding of the Old Sarum-based ‘B Squadron’ of the Royal Wessex Yeomanry, said: “The aim of the day was to not just test, but to develop participants’ team-working skills in a memorable and meaningful way, with a focus on leadership and exemplary followership at the core of effective team work.
“The participants did extremely well and have given us top-class feedback which is very much appreciated. It was clearly a fantastic experience all round.”
Employing nearly 200 people, with offices in Ringwood, Bournemouth, Poole, Swanage, Wimborne, Broadstone and London, Ellis Jones has a number of staff with regular, reservist and cadet force connections.
The firm is a signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant, a promise by the nation ensuring that those who serve or who have served in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly.
In August 2024, Ellis Jones received the Gold Award of the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) for its forces-friendly activities under the Covenant.
Lieutenant Colonel Ant Sharman VR, Commanding Officer of the Royal Wessex Yeomanry, said: “We depend on strong relationships with supportive employers like Ellis Jones, who understand the benefits their employees can take from their training with us.
“Events like this are a great way for employers to underline their support to their team, and it’s no surprise to see one of Dorset’s Armed Forces Covenant ERS Gold Award holders getting stuck in this way!”
