Profile - Dean Blood: Family tradition of crimefighting lives on – but in the boardroom

There was hell to pay when 16-year-old Dean Blood told his father that he wouldn't be following him into the police force.

Instead, announced the teenager, he was going to do a sheet metal apprenticeship.

"There was some challenge and debate about where my sense had gone," said Mr Blood, whose older brother had already become a policeman.

But he did not waver and went on to join Chloride Industrial Batteries.

Three decades on, he is finally a crimefighter, albeit in a roundabout way.

Mr Blood is the new chief executive of Datong plc, the manufacturer of covert surveillance, tracking and location equipment used by the military and law enforcement agencies to fight terrorism, drug trafficking and organised crime.

He said: "My father deserves a mention in everything I have done because he ran a big family in very difficult circumstances, wasn't frightened of hard work and actually talked a hell of a lot of sense."

The family was raised in Bolton, Lancashire, where Mr Blood spent the first half of his life. They were happy years, he recalled.

At school he showed an aptitude for maths, technical drawing, metalwork, and woodwork, but "definitely not history".

After joining Chloride, he showed promise and was promoted to the design and drawing office to work on projects involving aircraft, tanks and submarines.

In those days, there was no long-term plan to speak of. The focus instead was on making a living and carving out a home with his new wife, Hilary.

But his ability to get things done and approach to problem solving helped mark him out. It led to a competitor coming in for him at the age of 24.

The newlywed Bloods moved to South Wales as senior design manager at Hawker Energy Products, which was part of the Hawker Siddeley Group, the renowned aircraft manufacturer.

He describes his work on developing the fly-by-wire control system for Boeing's 777 in Seattle as a key event in his development. "When all else fails, that's the thing that keeps the plane flying," he said.

Hawker recognised his leadership potential and sent him on an industrial MBA-type course, which taught him about growing a business.

The company also introduced Mr Blood to procurement, sending him to China for six months to develop a supply chain for a factory in the first of many business trips to Asia.

Success at Hawker led to a job as procurement executive at Smiths Industries, a supplier to the Eurofighter project.

He was representing Smiths at an aerospace conference when a chance meeting led to a job offer from Rolls-Royce. He joined the group's new global procurement team in 2000.

"For me, Rolls-Royce is everything that's good about British industry, in terms of how it's developed itself through innovation, investment and, importantly, putting together good solutions for the customer. They were the pinnacle for me of British manufacturing."

He added: "I had a fantastic eight years with that organisation. I enjoyed the experience of being in a growing company that took things very professionally and maturely.

"For me that was probably the best time of my career so far. The group was doing all the things it said it would do and gave me as an individual the chance to grow with it. You felt like your ideas were valued, taken on board and in many cases you had the chance to see them through."

The job took him around the world and over time led to him running supply chain strategies in the group's global marine and civil sector operations.

But after a leadership course at Oxford University's Corpus Christi College, he decided that he wanted to run a company and when a headhunter came asking about the role of chief operating officer at Datong he went for it, attracted by its ambitions, investment strategies and public listing.

He became chief executive in July 2009. It was, in his words, a tumultuous year in which to take charge.

After five years of sustained organic growth, the business suffered a 40 per cent fall in revenues and saw annual profits reverse to a 1.5m loss.

Like nearly all businesses, Datong was hit by the economic downturn. The company was also involved in a patent infringement case, which had a big impact on its revenues. And an administration change in the United States – its largest market – slowed orders.

In response, the company produced a new strategy to position itself in a balanced way for 2010, which resulted in 10 redundancies, said Mr Blood.

Since then, Datong has diversified into new markets in the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Central and South America, but the company will still only sell to governments and their agencies.

"We don't sell into certain countries in the world because they are not considered allies to the West. We have turned down business and we will continue to do so."

Datong will add to its 60 or so products throughout this year, following some successful launches last year, which included Rapid, a covert tracking device, and an improved cellular range, of use to anti-corruption and anti-fraud units.

It is upgrading its core product range via miniaturisation, extended operation life and increased sensitivity in performance.

Mr Blood is confident about the future. "The company has turned a corner having had a very difficult 2009 and at the half year we announced as a result of some of our initiatives a record order intake and a much-improved position in contrast to where we finished the year. And that continues.

"There's a long way to go, as always. But I think we have now momentum to support the direction and the company's vision to 2012 that we believe will position well with our competitors, satisfy our customers and importantly provide increased security for our employees."

Trends in the global security market appear to bode well for the business, which listed on Aim five years ago.

"The good news is whereas once upon a time everybody's budget would have been spent on military aircraft, tanks, aircraft carriers and mass deployment of armies, we are now seeing people turn towards intelligence gathering and prevention of atrocities or criminal activity which means a bigger place and opportunity for Datong and its equipment."

Outside of work, Mr Blood enjoys the occasional game of golf, but most of his leisure time is spent with his wife and 11-year-old son. They enjoy travelling and often visit Cyprus, where he has a small stake in a vineyard.

He enjoys live rock music, a taste reflected in his most recent choice of reading material – the autobiography of Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood.

"I enjoy reading autobiographies. I'm just about to read about Brian Clough in Damned United.

"In recent times, I enjoyed reading Mandela's story because he made a difference. Generally that's the theme I look for, somebody who's made a difference."

Back on the subject of work, Mr Blood reflected on what has propelled him through his career.

"Change. I really enjoy the concept of change. I found myself always comfortable with it. Change for good normally brings success. Whether it be the bottom line in running the business, or whether it be growth in terms of corporate strategy, or whether it be growth in you as an individual, that's what I enjoy."

DEAN BLOOD CV

Title: Chief executive officer of Datong plc.

Date of birth: May 19, 1964.

Education: MBA / Eng Council part II.

First job: Fabrication and welding apprenticeship.

Favourite holiday destination: Cyprus.

Last book read: Superfreakonomics by Levitt and Dubnor.

Car driven: BMW 530i.