The ECITB has appointed Matt Knights as Director of Regional Operations and Chris Mann as Director of Learning and Assurance. The appointments come ahead of Chief Operating Officer, Andy Brown’s, retirement at the end of the year.
“Matt and Chris both bring a huge amount of experience to the new roles which are pivotal in our work to lead industry learning.”
Andrew Hockey
CEO at the ECITB
Regional Operations works with in-scope employers to ensure their training requirements are met along with supporting employer uptake of apprenticeships, ECITB-supported new entrants and other strategic workforce development programmes.
The Learning and Assurance Directorate manages the delivery and development of ECITB products including the occupational standards that form the basis of the ECITB’s training, testing and qualification products. It oversees its online learning programme (the LXP) and supports the ECITB Awarding Organisation, which delivers and quality assures regulated qualifications across Great Britain.
Andy Brown joined the ECITB in 2006 and became Director of Operations in 2013. He briefly took on the mantle of Interim Chief Executive for the ECITB in 2023 until Andrew Hockey joined later that year.
Andrew added: “Andy has been instrumental in the success of Connected Competence, the realisation of the Regional Skills Hubs and the project management steering group, to name but a few. He has continually stepped up to the plate showing unwavering commitment and dedication to the ECITB.
“Ahead of his planned retirement at year-end, the new directors will be able to benefit from Andy’s huge breadth of experience and background knowledge in their new roles.”
About Matt Knights
Matt has over two decades of experience across diverse sectors and brings a wealth of expertise in operational management, workforce development and leadership.
Starting his career as a Royal Engineer from 1999 to 2004, Matt honed his skills in discipline, problem-solving, and leadership. He later transitioned into the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), where he spent eight years focusing on the operational delivery of offender rehabilitation programs and staff training. His work in this area underscored his commitment to transforming lives and helping individuals rebuild their futures.
In pursuit of his passion for workforce development, Matt joined the East of England Energy Group (EEEGR), leading a project to transition unemployed individuals and service leavers into the energy sector. His leadership in this initiative paved the way for his next career move into the ECITB.
Since joining the ECITB, Matt has held various key roles over the past 10 years. His dedication to ensuring the fair and efficient use of industry levies to fund critical training initiatives has been a cornerstone of his work.
About Chris Mann
Chris began his career as an apprentice and went on to serve for 25 years in the Royal Navy as an aircraft engineer. A significant part of his naval career was dedicated to training and developing aircraft engineers, technicians, and mechanics, shaping his passion for education and skills development.
In 2008, Chris joined the ECITB, where he spent a decade in the Research and Product Development team, eventually leading it before heading up the skills foresighting function. He later moved to the senior leadership team at EAL, a regulated awarding body for the engineering and manufacturing sectors.
In 2020, Chris took planned semi-retirement, spending over two years exploring the English waterways with his wife on a newly built fifty-eight-foot narrowboat he had commissioned prior to the Covid epidemic. Despite enjoying the tranquillity of canal life and the rich engineering heritage surrounding him, Chris found himself missing the sense of purpose and fulfilment that comes from working in education and engineering — leading him back to the ECITB.
