Francesca

University: University of Manchester

Degree: Nuclear Science and Technology

Graduate Opportunity: Cyber Security

My Background

Following graduation, I spent two years working in a different industry. I felt that I was not being challenged and decided on a career change. I had been interested in cyber security prior to joining the nuclear industry and thought it would provide me with a fresh challenge that would also allow me to develop – and not get bored. However, given my lack of IT or cyber qualifications I was concerned this would be a problem – however, this turned out to be completely unfounded.

Atos stood out as a place that would support me in my development, within an environment and industry that would constantly challenge me. A year in, and I can comfortably say that support is always available, and the on-the-job training coupled with the training programme for Cyber has enabled me to grow and learn the technical skills required. I am now a valuable member of the team, contributing to billable work.

There is a commitment to personal development for all graduates, covering both soft and technical skills, so there is always help and support available when needed. The best thing about working here is the variety of work we get – no two days are the same and every day presents a new challenge. What’s more, the company generally provides a high degree of flexibility around working arrangements.

My job summed up

I am a project Cyber Security Engineer, which means delivering new cyber solutions for key accounts. My role is varied but mainly spans design, build and configuration of solutions. Once the solution has been fully deployed, we pass it across to our Cyber Operations team to monitor and investigate any incidents as necessary. I am currently working on two projects for two separate public sector clients and a third for a private sector client. Each of these clients poses different challenges, so no two days are ever the same.

A day in my life

0900-1100

I start the day with a coffee and check through my emails, responding to and actioning any issues that may have occurred overnight. Many of the vendors for our tools are based overseas, so if we have raised any support tickets to aid with the build and configuration of solutions they will reply overnight. I may need to call the vendors’ support centres and deal directly with any problems, particularly where this is impacting delivery timescales. At the same time, I work with project managers to review progress against timelines to ensure that we deliver on time. We may also have kick-off meetings, usually online as we work in remote teams, but sometimes in person.

1100-1300

Later in the morning, I continue with any build and configuration work for current deployments.

1300-1500

Following lunch with some of the other grads or members of my team, I’ll test any configuration work or other changes that have recently been made. Once we can prove that everything has worked successfully, I’ll then update the test documentation.

1500-1700

Later in the afternoon, I’ll work on design documents and include any low-level design work we have implemented. Keeping accurate documentation is critical to the success of any project. I may also work on some of the service transition documents required to pass the solution into the Cyber Ops team.

1700 till late …

The day finishes with any daily wrap-up calls, and then I’ll update my to-do list for tomorrow. I’ll then head home or out for dinner and drinks with the team.