Megan Howell joined Jaguar Land Rover in 2015 to study for a degree apprenticeship in Engineering. In 2021, Megan’s hard work, determination and commitment were acknowledged when she was awarded a First-Class Bachelor of Engineering degree with honours by the University of Warwick.
At the start of her professional career as a Cost Engineer and hot on the heels of a listing in the Autocar Great Women in the British car industry 2022 initiative, Megan tells us why Jaguar Land Rover is a great place to work for Black talent.
- Why Jaguar Land Rover for Black talent?
Now is a really exciting time for Black talent to join Jaguar Land Rover. The automotive industry is not traditionally known for its diversity; however, Jaguar Land Rover has committed to changing this narrative. Jaguar Land Rover is the first UK car manufacturer to sign the Business in the Community Race at Work Charter and has partnered with a number of other external diversity bodies – most recently BYP. Over the next five years, Jaguar Land Rover’s Diversity & Inclusion strategy, championed by our CEO Thierry Bollore, will see the company strive to shape “a culture in which every one of our employees can bring their authentic self to work and reach their full potential”. This will be bolstered by the implementation of progressive policies, benefits and support, along with employee engagement to accelerate progress.
All of these D&I initiatives paired with our global Reimagine strategy see Jaguar Land Rover entering an era of true internal and external transformation. There is a lot of change on the horizon and more opportunity than ever before. For Black talent wanting to be part of that evolution and passionate about becoming trailblazers for upcoming BYPs, I think it’s a great place to be right now.
2. What do you like about working here?
It’s great working on two internationally recognised brands that are pioneering modern luxury. We design, engineer, manufacture and market beautiful vehicles. With that comes a real sense of pride for the brand and what we do.
I like how multi-faceted the company is in terms of the job roles, working environments and experience available. Different functions attract and cultivate different skills, personality types and ideas. It’s great seeing the cross-functional collaboration that happens to deliver an amazing end product every time. I really enjoy that in my job role, I interface with a lot of these functions.
3. How does the REACH (Race, Ethnicity & Cultural Heritage) network enhance life at Jaguar Land Rover?
The Jaguar Land Rover REACH employee network will be celebrating its 4th birthday this September. The network exists to champion employees from all races and ethnicities to be equally represented and celebrated across Jaguar Land Rover. Racial equality is also a high priority to Jaguar Land Rover senior leaders, with a clear target to increase ethnic representation by 15% across all levels of our business by 2026. Working closely with core stakeholders across the business, the REACH network will be instrumental in creating initiatives to help Jaguar Land Rover achieve this target.
As a member of the committee and Communications Lead, I love that I get to play such an active part in Jaguar Land Rover’s journey toward becoming a more inclusive business. It is a huge amount of work but super rewarding and looking after the comms, branding and marketing activities for the network allows me to use and develop skills in an area that I’m passionate about.
We run four core types of events – Lunch & Learns (to educate and open conversations), Roadshows (to build awareness of REACH and its fundamentals around the business), Mastermind Series (to provide networking and development) and Change Makers (to improve employee work experience). We have a Yammer page and curate a monthly newsletter along with holding events and celebrations for various cultural occasions throughout the year. We have an internal mentorship scheme and also partner with local educational bodies to encourage bringing diverse talent into the business, in addition to actively encouraging the progression of diverse talent.
The REACH network has enhanced my life at Jaguar Land Rover, and I’ve heard the same from many others. I only wish I had known about it when I first joined! However, this is a part of the work we are doing with our Roadshows and partnerships with Early Careers to raise awareness. The sense of unity and reward that comes from being a member of the committee, building it from the ground up and bringing people together is amazing. As a member of REACH, I get to expand my network and meet like-minded people from across the business who want to have a more meaningful experience at work. REACH makes work feel a bit more like home.
4. How does Jaguar Land Rover empower employees?
Where applicable, Jaguar Land Rover had maintained flexibility on hybrid working after the benefits seen on wellbeing when it started during the pandemic.
Our employee-led networks help foster our culture of empowerment. If you just want to clock in, do your hours, and clock out that’s fine – but if you want to push yourself to do more there are chances to get yourself more involved.
To view our profile on BYP, click here.
