Derek Brown

Derek Brown
Service Controller, London Underground
Joined LU Management Scheme 2000

A student job which lead to much more

I joined London Underground as a part-time Customer Service Assistant in 2000. I was a student then so I just wanted the free Tube pass! But I decided to stay and build my career because I get a lot of personal satisfaction from the work that we do. I joined the Graduate Management scheme in 2006. Now I'm a Service Controller on the Metropolitan, Circle and Hammersmith & City Lines. I decided my career route quite early in my scheme as being an internal candidate I already had a good understanding of London Underground's services. I feel I have a lot I can contribute towards helping to overcome the challenges London Underground face keeping it's services running whilst undergoing such a massive period of change.

Air traffic control for trains

The job is a bit like Air traffic control, but for trains. The Service Controller has overall responsibility for the day-to-day running of the train service on any particular line. I monitor the position of all trains to ensure a regular even service is being offered to all sections of the line and make any necessary adjustments to provide it. I am a central co-ordination point for any incident that occurs on the line (like a signal failure or person under a train) and need to react to quickly provide any necessary response.

Making a real difference to Tube users across London

There's no other person within London Underground who has a greater impact on the service that customers receive than the Service Controller. It was one of the main things that attracted me to the role. Decisions that I make affect the lives of tens of thousands of people. After a day's hard work, especially when you've helped solve a multitude of problems and kept everything moving, you feel a great sense of achievement. The best thing is the feeling that you're making a valuable contribution in your day-to-day work.

Making the right career choices

My career has taken off since joining the graduate scheme. As a Customer Service Assistant I had a distant dream of becoming a Controller. The training and the exposure of the graduate scheme helped make that dream a reality. It's a great place to work, with lots of opportunities in many different disciplines for anybody who's willing to grab them with both hands. I tell my friends I've made two key career moves in my time - firstly joining London Underground, and secondly joining the graduate scheme.