Acceler8 Your Future: Tim Schofield, Cybersecurity Operations Manager

From building websites in the late ’90s to mastering cloud infrastructure and cybersecurity architecture, his career has tracked the pace of modern technology — agile, adaptive and always evolving. Now, as Cybersecurity Operations Manager at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team, Tim sits at the intersection of the world’s fastest-growing and most high-performance industries, Formula 1® and IT.

But it wasn’t just his résumé that got him here. It was his relentless curiosity and a passion that have powered him through decades of transformation.

“Passion takes you through the challenges,” Tim reflects. “Following that passion can drive you on to better things, learning new technologies.”

Tim had long kept motorsport and technology separate until his wife took a job in racing. “I saw how much pleasure and excitement she got out of it,” he smiled. “And I thought, now is the time to really hunt out that dream job.”

When a role opened up on the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team for a Solution Architect, he raced to apply. But after he got the role, his drive didn’t stop there, and he used that momentum to Acceler8 his future even further at the company. “I saw opportunity and growth in a different area,” he told us. “And I was able to vocalise that and work with my managers to move into that position and talent flow through the team.”

Now, he’s doing exactly what he loves by fusing his technical expertise with his love for the sport, helping defend performance at the highest level. “Personally, I'm a big fan of motorsport, a very big fan of F1®,” he says. “But my passion for IT — and for cybersecurity — all combined together, makes it my favourite thing.”

What makes working in IT at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team different from any other tech job you’ve had or could imagine having?

It's got a lot of unique opportunities and unique challenges that it'd be very hard to find anywhere else. Because we work in a fast-paced industry, because we work in multiple countries and we travel the globe with our IT equipment, we must be able to keep on top of emerging threats between countries.

And, to put it bluntly, without protecting that availability of our IT infrastructure, it would be very hard to go racing and to protect the confidentiality of our data. So we protect the competitive advantage of the team and we help contribute to our success.

What gets you out of bed in the morning?

My responsibility to protect the team, as well as the opportunity of the day. I really enjoy seeing what's going to happen within the team, as well as the excitement of working with the technology within this industry.

What’s a key skill or mindset that has helped you thrive in such a fast-paced, high-stakes environment?

I think a key skill that helps me is having passion for the industry that we work in, passion for the technology that I use, and being able to adapt to any situation we find ourselves in. You've got to have that thirst for knowledge — the thirst to understand how things work.

But, soft skills like communication are also a key to working in this industry. Being able to communicate with your team and the wider IT team. And if you're able to communicate with the wider business, understand their requirements, understand their problems and needs, then we'll be able to perform a better service and enhance their ability to win races and win championships.

At Circle8, we see coaching, training, and mentorship as key to career growth. Tell us about the importance any of these have played in helping you get here today.

Coaching and mentoring have helped me massively over the years, and I’ve felt that through all the different roles I've had. Working with the people I've been lucky to work with, I got to learn so much. It's their experience that you digest and you're able to put into your day-to-day and grow yourself. So it's been vitally important to me and it wouldn't be where I am without it.

Our Total Talent Flow is about recognizing that todays perfect fit might evolve tomorrow. Have you experienced a time at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team when embracing change led to professional growth?

When I applied for the first role here at Aston Martin Aramco, the title was Solution Architect. I'd been a Solution Architect previously for a lot of years, but once I started working in the position, I saw opportunity and growth in a different area to follow a skillset that I also had within cybersecurity.

I was able to vocalise that and work with my managers to move into that position and talent flow through the team into the area that I'd like to work in. And you can see that throughout the IT department, that a lot of people may start in one position but they end up in another, because as they follow their passion, opportunities follow.

In fast-paced environments like F1®, HR doesn’t always get credit. But, where have you seen them make a real impact on your career or team?

Definitely the talent flow of the team, and seeing the career progression that’s available. I believe that’s something we strongly align with Circle8, too. HR, alongside our IT team, have a keen ability to identify emerging talent and new talent, and bring those people on the journey within the team to reach their goals and our goals retrospectively.

Can you share an example of how teamwork has helped overcome a challenge within your IT role at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team?

For me, it's quite a difficult question to answer because everything that we do involves the team. We have a Cybersecurity Operations Team, and we all play key parts in that. There's not really one situation where anyone's siloed off. If an analyst finds some data that needs reviewing, we come together as a team initially, and then we can spread it out wider into the IT team. If we didn't work as a team, we would fail to detect, protect or respond to any emerging cyber threats.

What advice would you give to aspiring IT professionals looking to work for a high-performance team like Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ and a sport like F1®?

I think if someone's looking to get a career in Formula One®, or just grow their career within IT, my advice would be to follow what your passion is. Flow with your goal. If that’s within Cloud Infrastructure, but also you have a passion for Motorsport or something else, you can combine those and use the power of IT to get the career path that you want.