Even if you haven't heard the name Thales before, you've definitely benefited from our innovation.

Thales protects the information systems of the world's largest banks and safeguards 3.7 billion UK transactions every year. Our in-flight entertainment technology makes you laugh and cry at 35,000 feet, and our electronic platform information and train signalling probably got you safely to your destination today.

Our graduates are instrumental to making this all happen. Together, we create the ingenious technological systems and innovations that impact and improve people's lives every single day.

Being a Thales graduate is much more than a 9 to 5. As well as an exciting job in a leading global engineering company, Thales gives you the platform to showcase your skills and experience to industry peers and professionals.

Taking on the APM Challenge

Two teams of Thales graduates recently took part in the Association of Project Management (APM) Challenge (Thames Valley Branch) to demonstrate their project management expertise to the nation.

This year, the APM Challenge asked participants to develop a project around the theme of ‘communication’. Teams had to report on each stage of the project lifecycle and prepare a presentation to be delivered at the APM Challenge Awards.

Both Thales teams made it to the final round of the competition – two of three teams shortlisted to face the panel of industry judges – but it was Thales Team Grad2Grad that took the overall prize for their entry, Grad2Grad magazine.

Bianca Mawee Patel, Luke Gowers, Michael Salliss, Alexander Stockill, Shadi Fatemi and Lydia Saunders saw an opportunity to create a dedicated communication channel for our emerging talent, producing a magazine written for graduates, by graduates. Team Grad2Grad determined that a magazine was a simple and accessible format for their audience, something to leisurely flick through on a lunch break as well as a reference point for useful information.

But deciding on a concept was only the beginning of the process, as Bianca Mawee-Patel, Graduate Contracts Officer and a member of Team Grad2Grad, explains: “As a team, we didn’t realise the sheer complexity of the project implementation. We had to coordinate results from our market research with the guidance and opinions of the Internal Communications and Emerging Talent teams, our key stakeholders for this project.”

By drawing on experience from their roles at Thales and working with colleagues across the business, Team Grad2Grad not only walked away with the top prize, they also won the award for Best Presentation, judged by attendees at the APM Challenge Awards.

Team Grad2Grad faced tough competition though from fellow finalists BAE Systems and Thales’s Team Security, with only 3% of the final score separating first and third place.

Despite missing out on an award, Team Security – Sachin Premji, Ben Nattrass, Royceston D’Souza, Paul Collins, Victoria Kerr and Andrew MacAskill – developed an impressive project that sought to deliver educational workshops about cyber and social media security to the Thales graduate community.

More than just a job

At Thales, we’ll give you the training and attention to realise your potential, as well as a unique opportunity to experience a range of work across Thales, and beyond.

Luke Gowers, Marketing Analyst and a member of Team Grad2Grad, says: "Taking part in the APM Challenge was a huge commitment and we put in a lot of hard work, in addition to our day jobs. However, it was a fantastic experience that taught us a lot and gave us a chance to practice and implement what we have learnt while on the Thales graduate scheme.

“I would heartily recommend that all my fellow graduates consider getting stuck in with a project like the APM Challenge!”

To find out more about our Engineering and Business graduate schemes, please visit http://ukearlycareers.thalesgroup.com/.