What does it mean to be a SQEP? And what do our SQEP’s do all day?! Well, we can tell you – they’re very busy! But let’s give you a little more detail… Join us on our new series of ‘A Day in the Life of…’ where you’ll get to find out a bit more about how our team delivers their varied expertise.
See below for Instalment 1: A Day in the Life of a ‘Senior Safety Consultant’ SQEP – Ollie James-Knight:
What do you like most about your job?
“The interesting kit we get to work on. Some of our customers are developing truly innovative pieces of equipment or pushing existing ideas in new directions at the cutting edge of science and engineering. Getting to play a role within that development is always exciting and one of the main reasons I got into engineering to begin with.”
Can you tell me what a typical day might look like?
“I’m not sure there is such a thing as a typical day as a consultant! Our adaptability is one of our strengths and we are often required to solve unexpected or immediate challenges as they arise. One thing that does remain consistent is regular communication between myself and the customer, as well as internally within SQEP to lean on the expertise available and ensure we deliver the best solution.”
What kind of work/projects/contracts are you involved in?
“During my time with SQEP I have worked across both product and organisational safety contracts. I have worked closely with our partners to conduct hazard assessments and build safety cases for the services and products they provide to support UK defence.
Additionally, I have worked to develop Safety Management Systems and conduct change assessments when new equipment is introduced into the frontline environment, ensuring residual risk is managed and safety is not compromised.
This broad spectrum of experience has been useful in my development and enabled me to see how the two cross-pollinate.”
Tell me a bit about your previous career/education?
“I previously studied Aerospace Engineering, obtaining my Bachelor’s in 2019, and am currently studying towards my Master’s in Safety Critical Systems Engineering, through the University of York and supported by SQEP. Before joining SQEP I worked within the MoD safety manager responsible for bringing a new platform into service, as well as a completing my graduate scheme there with a specialism on safety and environmental skills.”
Has there been any opportunities for career progression for you to date?
“I have just taken the step up to Senior Consultant from Consultant. I was only able to achieve this through the diverse range of opportunities that have been available to me at SQEP and the willingness of leadership to allow me to define the direction I wish to take my career in.”
Anything else you want to add – about SQEP/ The Defence Industry/ anything you think relevant?
“I am interested to see how defence will handle the next generation of automated systems currently being proposed. And whether the true benefits of these systems can be realised without over-adoption in unnecessary use cases.”
