Meet the team: Mark Smith

Tell us a bit about your role – what do you do and who do you work with?

I’m a qualification development manager, which means I’m responsible for the design, development and maintenance of new and existing qualifications.

I oversee the entire product lifecycle, from initial market research and draft design to assessments and ongoing reviews, ensuring the programmes meet industry standards and regulatory requirements. This role includes liaising with employers, industry partners, education providers and regulatory bodies.

Tell us a bit about you – when did you start with iCQ Awards, what was your previous experience?

I have been working in the education sector for nearly 20 years. I have held a variety of posts from lecturing in colleges to running traineeships contracts, apprenticeship delivery and curriculum development, among many other things.

I’ve been working for People 1st International, one of iCQ’s sister organisations in The Workforce Development Trust group for the past 7 years. This role dovetails perfectly with the other curriculum and skills-based projects I am involved in with iCQ Awards.

What do you like most about working in the education and qualifications sector?

The opportunity to help other people.

I grew up in a socially deprived area and when I first moved from industry into the education sector, I did a lot of work with NEETS (Not in Education, Employment or Training) and long-term unemployed people.

This really resonated with me as I could metaphorically see the same characters that I grew up among in the clientele I was working with.

I get a real sense of achievement from supporting someone to get their first qualification, secure employment or just see them grow as they gain confidence and build their skills.

Tell us about a time or some of your experiences where you have seen the impact that qualifications or apprenticeships have made for individual learners?

If you stay in the industry long enough you will often see the fruits of your labour. Every now and then I will be out and about, and I will bump into someone I have supported in some way, shape or form. To see people making progress always gives me a buzz.

I’ve done quite a bit of work internationally, supporting qualification development and implementation of educational standards and programmes. This is generally in developing countries, quite often with a focus on youth employment or bringing females into the workplace, often in male dominated industries.

To know you are a small part of making a big change and having a meaningful impact, not only on an individual’s life, but also as part of wider social transformation, is a real privilege to be involved with.