Q: What position did you start in and what is your position now? Please describe your current responsibilities.
I’m on the Product Engineering Graduate Programme and started my journey in the Lighting Department as my home team working on interior lighting feature development.
At the moment I’m 1 year in the Graduate Programme and just 1 week in my current placement within Automated & Assisted Driving (AAD) Department, where I’m learning about the different vehicle architectures, working on both software & hardware system components and testing ADAS features on our released & pre-release vehicles.
Q: Are you involved in any other projects / networks? If so, please describe what they are and what your contributions are.
I’m on the Early Careers Ambassador Programme where we support events across all pillars of EC engagement (University, Apprenticeships & School engagement).
I also participate in events organised by REACH and the Islamic Society Networks where they present great opportunities to reach out to other JLR employees from diverse backgrounds.
Q: What do you like about working here?
The first thought that comes to mind is the cars – but also it’s mainly the culture in JLR where everyone can fit in but also stand out at the same time, if that makes sense.
Engaging in so many networks I believe has helped me know various people from different areas and learn from them on a personal and professional level.
Q: What are your career aspirations? Do you feel that you get the necessary support from your management / department to help achieve your learning & development goal?
Having an Engineering background with some experience in the Commercial space, I’ve been passionate about having the best of both worlds where I can have insights on our clients’ needs & wants and translate them into engineering designs. To describe it in better terms, I aim to do what I’m good at to deliver my passion.
Since day 1 my department has been supportive in that matter as I’m given guidance & shown patience with my non-stop questions – which I’m known for by now – and I’ve done placements both in Product Engineering & Commercial.
Q: Describe your team / department, and what makes it stand out from our competition?
Any lights you see outside & inside our vehicles are designed and developed by the Lighting department. That starts from concept of the products ranging from front and rear lamps to the actual look and feel of the lights whether in exterior lamps or interior screens and ambient lighting.
We get to experience the vehicles first-hand which is always exciting while also developing new technology and ideas to realise our vision of modern luxury.
Although the best thing I appreciate about my team is that it’s guaranteed that someone will bring snacks & treats for the entire department every week.
Q: Tell us 3 interesting facts about yourself.
Probably the most interesting and boring fact at the same time is that I’d never left Egypt, where I lived my entire life, before moving to the UK to join JLR.
I also have photographic memory which comes in handy if I’m ever lost somewhere with no phone, I think it’s also how I survived Uni!
Last but not least is that I love pizza, which is very common but never boring. If you ever catch me outside work I’m probably heading to a pizza place, feel free to come along.
Q: What hints and tips can you share with the potential candidates who are going through the application / interview process?
The best tip in my opinion is to be your true self, which is actually the Purpose of JLR to ‘Live the Exceptional with Soul’, as JLR encourages everyone to do what they’re passionate about.
