What is your current role?
I’m the Systems Architect for Leonardo’s Future Combat Air group, which focuses on understanding the needs of future air platforms and how we can integrate Leonardo’s product offerings to realise those desired capabilities. Currently, I’m focussed on the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) where Leonardo is leading an Integrated Sensing And Non Kinetic Effects (ISANKE) capability – a complex and highly integrated system which will provide greater situational awareness and enable faster decision making.
GCAP is representative of a wider trend across Leonardo’s projects with a drive towards ever more complex and integrated systems. This is great news for systems architects, since we are .in demand and have lots more interesting challenges to solve!
Why did you choose to join Leonardo?
There were several reasons. When I started researching projects that Leonardo is involved in, I could see the company’s drive to be more than a product supplier; it was investing in developing systems integration capabilities and working on complex and large-scale projects which excited the systems engineer in me. Additionally, I was drawn to the work / life balance that Leonardo offers; the working practices and benefits help me to further my career aspirations while ensuring I have time to share with my family.
What does a typical day/week look like?
My role is focussed on helping our team produce an integrated system. Our business, our development teams and our customers have many years’ experience defining products, so strategically we must adapt this experience to help define an integrated system. My time is split between defining models which help us validate our understanding of the customer’s (and other stakeholders’) needs and requirements, and working with our technology development teams to consider what our solution might look like. I love spending time with domain experts, sharing my vision of the wider system and how their technology will contribute to the overall capability.
What do you get up to outside of work?
I have two young boys, so I spend a fair amount of time taking them to Beavers, Cubs, rugby and music lessons (they have a far more active social life than me!). Luckily, my boys also share my passion for biking, so we get to spend time together out on our bikes enjoying the countryside around Bedfordshire or further afield.
Would you recommend working as a systems architect in Leonardo, and why?
Absolutely! I’ve been a systems engineer in the Aerospace and Defence industries for around 20 years and one thing that has always frustrated me is that there is a big step from being a product supplier to being a systems Integrator. Most companies shy away from the challenge of making this step, but Leonardo does not. We are meeting the challenge head on, developing our people, processes and capability. It is a hugely exciting place to work and there is a real passion and drive to progress.
What has been your greatest achievement at Leonardo so far?
I’ve only been with Leonardo for a year, but during that time I’ve helped shape a project that was struggling to gain traction and communicate its intent to the wider business. I worked with the team to identify the project’s stakeholders and clarify the needs so that we could set out an agreed strategy and gain business approval to drive development forward. I was really proud to see our hard work recognised with a contract award from the UK Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), which will help UK combat pilots detect and evade hostile threats. I was subsequently asked to transition roles to be the System Architect for GCAP, which is the biggest and (in my opinion at least!) most exciting programme in Leonardo.
What are your aspirations for the future?
Throughout my career, I have always aspired to work on bigger and more complex systems engineering projects. When I started working with Leonardo, I worked in a domain which was focussed on software only products. Once settled in that role, I discussed with my manager how I felt I could offer more to the business. When an opportunity came up within the GCAP programme, I leapt at the chance and my manager and new colleagues have supported me with additional training opportunities, support and mentoring to help me get established. Having just changed roles, my aspirations and current focus are on learning more about the many different technologies that we are going to be integrating and in applying the lessons I’ve learned from previous projects to ensure that GCAP is a success. It is an exciting programme and there is lots to learn!