Principal ISR Specialist

About the job

Lead our ISR Development and Delivery

We are looking for an energetic, innovative and collaborative person to lead technical activity in the ISR domain of our business and deliver outstanding capability to our customer. This individual will take on the role of Principal ISR Specialist for ISR capability on exciting defence projects that deliver an outstanding capability and service to the UK Ministry of Defence.

The difference the Principal ISR Specialist will make

At Babcock we are driven to delight our customers and ensure their mission is a success. Using their experience in the Principal ISR Specialist will own all user functional and non-functional requirements and support the Systems Engineering team in understanding the user need.

Backed up by a team of wide-ranging disciplines the Principal ISR Specialist will assume the lead internal user role for the project, operating the system from within our integration facility, and developing deep understanding of the ISR products that we deliver. You will probably learn more about our own systems than the engineers that designed them and you will learn to exploit the systems to their full potential. You will work with our customers to ensure that the system is used to its greatest potential to deliver the maximum value for its diverse array of consumers, passing on your knowledge through training and liaison directly with the end users. You will attend customer sites to see how they are using the system and, within the confines of the contract, be able to suggest better ways of working and provide innovative solutions backed up with documentation and guides.

The Principal ISR specialist will assist Babcock in understanding the end users needs and support the Systems Engineers and wider engineering team in converting these user requirements into tangible system requirements. For that reason, the ideal candidate will have been an ex-system operator or technician who is competent in the use of the systems which Babcock deliver throughout its ISR business.

This in-service capability is tied closely to a technology roadmap and mid-life design changes are often implemented to ensure alignment with the wider defence community. The Principal ISR Specialist will be responsible for liaison with the large stakeholder community to ensure smooth design, implementation and in service delivery of all our ISR systems but will be primarily focused on the Sky Siren Project initially.

For In-Service Support aspects of the project the Principal ISR specialist will work closely with the Systems Engineering team as well as other disciplines such as Field Engineering, Integrated Logistics Support, Project Management and Supply Chain to ensure that the capability we deliver is well-supported in service.

Who we’re looking for

• Collaborate: Win through building partnerships that last.

Significant engagement with the customer team and wider ISR community is a key part of the job, so the role requires someone for whom collaboration and working in partnership comes naturally

• Innovate to succeed: Bring ideas, and seek the simplest and most elegant solution.
  There are excellent growth opportunities on this contract and our customer enjoys the new and innovative ideas that we bring to the table. We’re looking for someone who’ll bring big ideas and solve complex problems with simple and elegant solutions.
• Respect and include everyone: Appreciate and integrate different perspectives and actively build an enjoyable and supportive culture.
  We’re committed to building an enjoyable and supportive culture for everyone, and we’re looking for someone who actively seeks out and values different perspectives.

Skills and Experience

Candidates must have an extensive background in ISR systems design or use, ideally familiar with the IBS enterprise. The perfect candidate may have worked in an intelligence field particularly fused ELINT, SIGINT, COMINT, GEOINT and cross domain MASINT. You will use this background to deliver outstanding products and service delivery to our customers, advising our design and systems engineers to create fit for purpose solutions.

The strongest candidate will have experience working and delivering in a defence environment, confidently delivering and supporting C5ISR / CEMA systems across the lifecycle.

We’re looking for someone who can communicate effectively at all levels of the organisation, providing briefs to senior management and working closely with Business Development and strategy leads to help shape our business in the future.

Competencies

As we’ve described, this role is about engaging and collaborating with a wide and exciting community of stakeholders, so we’re looking for someone who can confidently take a leading role in a technical team that often can span multiple disciplines, organisations, agencies and customers.

This strong collaborative nature must be underpinned by substantial ISR capability and experience. You will be the driving force behind capturing the user requirement and working with engineers to turn these into tangible systems or service requirements.

Education and Qualifications

• Candidates should be degree qualified in a relevant engineering or intelligence discipline or have equivalent recognised qualifications.
• Candidates should also hold relevant certifications or professional qualifications.

In return for your skill and passion, you’ll get:

• Flexible working and flexible locations – we give people more options to better integrate their work and personal life, whilst ensuring that business needs are met
• Opportunity to work with new technology
• Growth opportunities and potential to develop skills and develop your career.
• Opportunities to travel within the UK and internationally
• Autonomy to perform the role
• To work on some of the most exciting engineering projects this country has to offer
• Excellent development opportunities and benefits package
• The honour and responsibility of equipping our armed forces
• A relocation package for an outstanding candidate outside of the region

As well as:

• Holiday entitlement: 25 days, plus bank holidays
• Pension scheme with employee pension contributions matched up to 8% of salary, with life assurance
• Our Babcock Rewards Platform allows you to choose from a range of benefits that best meet your needs, including: critical illness insurance, travel insurance, healthcare cash plan, dental insurance, shopping offers
   and discounts
• Employee Share Scheme
• Free, independent employee assistance programme, offering confidential information, support, advice
   and counselling, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year
• Professional memberships, personal development training and opportunities
• If you are a reservist in the armed forces, we provide up to ten days special paid leave in support
   of your training commitments

Other need to knows:

• Travel: e.g. UK and potential to travel abroad as required
• The successful candidate must hold or be able to achieve Developed Vetting security clearance for this role.
• We are happy to talk about flexible working.  Please ask about alternative patterns of work at interview.
• Your safety and wellbeing are of paramount importance to us and health and safety is an integral part of
  our business. We operate in a high-risk environment; therefore we are looking for people who share our understanding and respect for health and safety for ourselves and each other to ensure that everyone goes
   home safe every day.
• A number of employee networks support and foster diversity and inclusion within Babcock, connecting people across the business and empowering them to achieve their potential. Our Diversity and Inclusion strategy amplifies their influence.

Application Guidance

All applications should be made online. Please use a desktop PC or laptop to create your account, then you’ll be able to apply to jobs from mobile devices. If you experience difficulties please click here. Recruitment correspondence is normally by email so please check your email account and spam folder regularly.

We are committed to building an inclusive culture and strive to attract talent who thrive in an inclusive and flexible working environment. If you have a disability or need any reasonable adjustments during the application and selection stages please let us know and will respond in a way that best fits your specific needs.

If you are currently employed by Babcock please let your line manager know that you’re applying for this vacancy.  You should also let them know if you are attending an interview or assessment for a role.

Please note that you will not be able to access the vacancy details after the closing date so you may wish to keep a copy of this advert and any supporting documents for your records.

Armed Forces Covenant

We are proud to support the armed forces community by honouring the Armed Forces Covenant. We recognise the value that Serving Personnel, both Regular and Reserves, Veterans, Uniformed Cadet Instructors and Service Families contribute to our business and the United Kingdom. As part of the Covenant, Babcock offers Reservists and Uniformed Cadet Instructors up to 2 week’s special paid leave to help them meet their commitments. To find out more please click here.

Babcock International

For more than a century, Babcock, the Aerospace and Defence Company, has been trusted to deliver bespoke, highly-skilled engineering services. We help customers in the UK and around the world to improve the capability, reliability and availability of their most critical assets within the four market sectors of Marine, Land, Aviation, and Nuclear, underpinned by a deep understanding of technology integration, unique infrastructure and specialist training.  You’ll benefit from excellent career and learning and development opportunities to ensure that you grow and achieve your full potential.

This role is within the Marine Sector of Babcock International Group, which delivers a wide array of complex through-life marine engineering services to defence and civil customers across the globe. These range from UK and international naval fleet support, commercial marine, engineering consultancy, weapons handling, equipment support, intelligence, cyber security and training. 

Devonport

Babcock’s Devonport Royal Dockyard location is located in the vibrant city of Plymouth, Devon in the south west of England.  Plymouth is a city with a long and proud military history and more than its fair share of heritage. There is something for everyone here; from a superb coastline if you are a water sports enthusiast or Dartmoor National Park if you enjoy hiking and climbing, or simply enjoy the fantastic scenery. For a great night out the historic Barbican area and Royal William Yard provides a wide variety of restaurants, bars and clubs.

Ashchurch

Our Ashchurch site – the Babcock Innovation Centre – is a newly refurbished engineering hub near Tewkesbury in the rural Severn Valley Gloucestershire, is readily accessible on the M5 and only 10 minutes from Cheltenham.  The M5 corridor between Cheltenham and Tewkesbury is the heart of the UK Cyber security and Defence innovation industry with Babcock central to it as one of the UK’s largest Defence suppliers.