Bristol Rovers have announced the appointment of Chris Gibson MBE to the club's board as a non-executive director.
Gibson was brought into the club by Joey Barton to conduct a structural review before the end of the League One season, which saw Rovers relegated to League Two.
Gibson had conducted similar work for Barton at Fleetwood Town and attended several games at the Mem last season.
And the army veteran of more than 30 years, who also holds roles at The Football Association and the Pro Licence coaching course, has been brought on board in an official role.
"We are delighted to welcome Chris to the board and are looking forward to working with him to build success here at Bristol Rovers," Wael Al-Qadi said in a club statement
"Chris has a great degree of experience of leadership from his time working in the military and special forces and he has worked with our Manager previously.
"His experiences, coupled with the work he does with the FA, would be a valuable asset to any football club.
"In his role, he will bring appropriate governance and assurances to the board's activity, in order to make the processes as transparent and accountable as possible."
Rovers' statement says Gibson will be an independent member of the board to deliver "added transparency". He will take on a liaison role with supporters' groups, too, to "ensure fans' voices can be heard at the top level".
"As well as this, Chris will be offering his expertise in the areas of business development and corporate management to further improve professionalism and business performance," the statement continued.
Gibson has decades of experience in military and governmental roles, in addition to aiding business and organisations improve leadership, management and staff structures.
He was awarded his MBE for his work to develop training programmes for military and NHS volunteers to tackle the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
“It is a real privilege and honour to be working in support of Bristol Rovers Football Club. I hope to use my experience, insight and track record of developing high performance teams to provide appropriate leadership guidance and mentorship to all those I come into contact within the club," Gibson said.
