Author: mandalc

Business Area, Diversity & Inclusion, Featured, Shannon, Shannon Life, Software

We have a strong Diversity & Inclusion culture here

mandalc

‘During the 11th year of my Software Engineering career working in Healthcare domain, I took the most difficult decision in my life – to apply abroad for Software Engineer roles. My husband motivated me to do so, while I was thinking of switching jobs.

On February 2019, we moved to Ireland with our child, and I started my role as a Senior Software Developer at Jaguar Land Rover. This was a huge transition, with everything being so new – but we settled well.

One of the best things working here in Jaguar Land Rover,  Shannon is that we are a relatively small and diverse group of people – from so many diverse cultures and countries. You can be part of a project team of six people from five continents – it’s amazing. I feel the company provides us with a very non – hierarchical organization structure – with a culture that has made me become a more confident person. Everyone has a voice here, I truly feel.

I am part of the Onboard Software Development Team. I currently work for Vehicle Analytics project. We have the opportunity to work on Jaguar Land Rover’s next generation vehicle software platform development. It’s very satisfying to see the code we develop gets deployed onto our premium vehicles – it’s always a proud moment for me.

We have a strong Diversity & Inclusion culture here. This year I joined as a committee member in She++ community – which is  Shannon’s in-house community that supports women in Jaguar Land Rover, Shannon. She++ community has women in Shannon and their allies as members. As part of She++ community activities, I was fortunate enough to participate as a panelist in a She++ panel discussion and get involved in various other programmes organized by She++ community. She++ community activities really resonates with my passion to contribute back to the community – especially to inspire girls to consider a career in technology and engineering.

One final thing that has impressed me about the company culture is the support from the business and how valued it makes you feel. The past two years have been difficult for everyone with the pandemic – but our managers have always made sure our work life balance and wellbeing have been looked after.’

Interested in joining our team in Shannon . Visit http://ow.ly/hqrF50IvQNH to find out more.

Business Area, Home Page, Powertrain

The automotive industry is ever evolving, and agile working is playing a big part here

mandalc

‘I joined Powertrain on the graduate scheme four years ago specialising in engine modelling and simulation. After a few three-month placements around the business, gaining some great experience, it was always my intention to return to the team here.

Powertrain had changed and moved forward in what we are working on. We are now more focussed on systems engineering. As a full powertrain system simulation team, we collaborate with a wide range of teams, both as a customer and a supplier, which gives a great overall perspective of the department and technologies.

Agile working is key to our success as a department – and as a Scrum Master – is also key to my role. I ensure that everyone in my squad can provide value on a project. I clear any obstacles and find solutions that enable us to work as efficiently as possible – enabling our team to deliver the best product on time. I get to see a lot of the business and really enjoy working on electric vehicle technology.

My squad work remotely in the UK and India. The squad was formed during the pandemic, so we have adapted to the find the best working methods for everyone. The time difference is probably the biggest challenge and, as Scrum Master, I need to ensure we use our time where we can all interact effectively.

The automotive industry is ever evolving, and agile working is playing a big part in Jaguar Land Rover. As a company we are using more software inhouse which gives us the flexibility to innovate and change. Agile is all about inspecting and adapting to what going on within the business. In Powertrain we work in 2-week sprints. In each 2-week period we inspect, adapt, and improve. A sprint isn’t about going faster – its about looking at what we are doing, making processes better and more efficient. It’s an exciting time to be a part of this industry.’

We have some amazing opportunities to join our team in Powertrain. Visit http://ow.ly/S29t50IuPHf to find out more.

#LifeatJLR #ReimagineYourFuture #Powertrain  

Business Area, Design, Home Page

I take pride in what I do, constantly pushing the boundaries and trying new things

mandalc

‘I have always enjoyed drawing from a very young age, as school life progressed, I didn’t enjoy academic studies as much. I studied graphic design at GCSE at school, then product design for my A-levels at college. After finishing college, I went on to study at Coventry University on the Automotive & Transport Design course.

I joined Jaguar Land Rover as a graduate and the company has played a major part in my career growth and personal development.  Based on the experience and opportunities I’ve had here, I’m more confident dealing with and presenting to senior managers. In turn, I’m more outgoing and confident in my personal life. I’m more resourceful now with what’s around me. I’ve also developed a great, passion for our products.

I’ve been involved in some amazing projects. Being part of the reimagination of the business was amazing.   I also played a big part in the new Range Rover’s early development phase, creating lots of animations and images as well as assisting with virtual reality (VR) presentations for customer clinics.   The Range Rover is such an iconic car, working on that project developed my career a lot!  Looking back at the start of my career and comparing my more recent work I can really see how my skills have evolved. 

Much of my role involves pulling together lots of information to realise a true vision of a project through storytelling. Crafting animations and VR experiences is a great way of working as it reduces the environmental impact of physically mocking up a vehicle.  We bring together information from different teams, identifying issues that improve the customer experience of the vehicles.

I take pride in what I do, constantly pushing the boundaries and trying new things.  We are the first people that realise the design teams’ vision. No two days here are ever the same and the work we do influences major design and business decisions, showcasing future concepts. 

I’m extremely lucky to be part of my team. Everyone is so approachable. There are people from so many different fields, we have a great combination of people in our team. The environment is fun, creative and empowering and we are encouraged to make creative decisions – that’s really exciting.’

To find out more about the  amazing opportunities to join our talented Design Team visit. Design (jaguarlandrovercareers.com)

#LifeatJLR #ReimagineYourFuture #Design

Business Area, Diversity & Inclusion, Home Page, Shannon, Shannon Life, Software

Women in Tech Mentoring Project

mandalc

All three women are currently reskilling, have completed their nine month software development training course and are now on internship for three months within Jaguar Land Rover, Shannon.

Fiona Gilchrist, (R&D Strategy Lead, Commercial Team), Ritu Johnstone (Project Manager/AGILE RTE), Arifa Khan (Senior Software Developer – Technical Lead), Tanya Flood (Senior Software Developer) and Madhuvanthi Nirmalnath (Software Developer) are participating in the Mentoring programme and are giving their free time to mentor women who have taken a break from their career and the workplace – and are now looking to reskill in tech.

Throughout the project, mentees are given access to key engineers within Jaguar Land Rover who are continuously sharing knowledge on coding skills, products and process that are critical to software engineering and the AGILE way of working. The skills that are being shared with the mentees are critical to working in the Tech and Automotive industry.

The mentees are also being guided on how to prepare for interviews and have been given a non-confidential overview of how software engineering is being used in JLRs products and processes. Garrett Colins, Engineering Manager from the VDC team and Padraig Jones (Software Engineering Manager) have also given up their time to demonstrate the latter. Karen O’Halloran recently provided an overview of the Jaguar Land Rover Graduate programme.

Fiona Gilchrist is hosting the mentees on the project on daily basis and organised for the mentors within Shannon to give up their valuable time to supporting technical aspects and soft skills. The mentees have access to office space on a weekly basis and key engineering personnel which is key to advancing their skills and knowledge for career progression within the Tech Industry.

All of the mentors agree that “this is a fantastic way to give back and, personally, learn different aspects of mentoring”. The project is a huge learning curve for the mentees and really helps build their confidence after such a lengthy career break – as it can be quite overwhelming to go back into the workplace.

Autonomous, Business Area, Home Page, Shannon, Shannon Life, Software, Technology

Even though I had no automotive experience – my skills and knowledge have been essential in the ADAS team

mandalc

‘I’m originally from Vietnam and that’s where my passion for computing began. I originally did a degree in Mathematics and Informatics followed by a scholarship to do my Masters in Applied Mathematics. I then received a scholarship to do my PHD at NUI Galway.

I didn’t know a great deal about Ireland, so it was a huge decision to make the big leap to live a such a different country. After time spent doing a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Limerick I decided to move over from academia to industry – joining Jaguar Land Rover after a short time in Valeo to be involved in computer modelling for autonomous vehicles – an area where my mathematics background fitted well.

Even though I had no automotive experience – my skills and knowledge have been essential in the ADAS team. Working here has been a big learning curve for me. I have gained new learnings and knowledge in my role. I didn’t know C ++ when I arrived in industry – or anything about computer vision – but I have learnt these new skills very quickly. I am always looking to improve my knowledge on relevant subjects, and I adapted very quickly to my role.

I’m also lucky to have worked with helpful managers and teams – the whole working environment is hugely supportive. The projects I work on are hugely challenging but the future looks extremely exciting. My academic background has been a huge benefit in helping me develop algorithms and be involved in some incredibly challenging problem solving in Autonomous driving. I love it!’

Play your part in our exciting journey http://ow.ly/aUNq50HYOW1

#LifeatJLR #ReimagineYourFuture #ADAS

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