What common issues did you see with teams at Silverstone this year?
We introduced some changes to the Business Presentation event rules for 2017 - it was very clear that some teams either hadn't read them or just simply ignored them - as a result some teams clearly put a lot of time and effort into certain elements of their presentations that scored them no marks!
What areas are still being overlooked?
I'm afraid to say there are still some teams who either don't value the business presentation event enough within the wider context of the competition and don't put in the effort it deserves - last year some teams didn't even bother to attend! Being blunt about it - if this is the mentality of your team you're not going to win!
What can teams expect at Learn to Win this year?
Learn to Win gives team the unique opportunity for direct access to the senior judges and industry experts all in one place! We'll not only deliver presentations on our own individual areas of the competition, but we'll be available for one to one conversations giving teams that safe space to ask those silly questions that have been really bugging them!
How important is Learn to Win for a team’s strategy?
Any team seriously wanting to win the Formula Student competition needs to do well in every event - this doesn't happen by accident! How teams approach each of the events needs to be planned in advanced - that is where Learn to Win can really help by providing teams access to Formula Student experts early enough in the competition that there is time to actually act on the feedback.
What are you excited about for Formula Student 2018?
Every year I get excited about Formula Student for the same basic reason: as an engineering manager, I spend a lot of time doing non-technical activities; there are reports to review, updating project progress against budgets and schedules, undertaking staff appraisals, making sure the customer is still happy and many other fun activities! Don't get me wrong - I enjoy doing these things and am very proud of what I have helped to achieve - but every year Formula Student give me that opportunity to really enjoy being an engineer, going around the pits, admiring the cars, talking to teams getting to know some of them a little bit better and understanding how they've got to where they are - and of course what they've still got to do on the cars. In short, its a fantastic atmosphere with some outstanding engineering achievements on display.
What should teams be doing in the run up to Christmas?
There are two very important things to do as the year comes to a close:
1. Review your progress: Have you achieved what you expected to by this point? If so, great, if not, do you have a recovery plan to get you back on track?
2. Make sure you have a good team social! I know from first hand experience that being on a Formula Student team can get a little stressful at times, therefore make sure you take advantage of the festive season and let the team blow off a bit of steam! You'll work better together as a team in the long run.
Any other advice for teams this year?
Nobody is perfect and both individually and as a team you will make mistakes - hopefully you'll learn from these and subsequently be better for it. Remember, if you get things wrong in Formula Student the most likely outcome is you won't have a running car to compete with and the team may end up feeling a bit disappointed. If you fail to learn and continue to make mistakes once you've graduated into industry; it might result in you needing to find a new job sooner than you'd expected! Formula Student is unrivalled in the experience you'll gain - please make sure you make the most of the unique learning opportunities it presents.