Thales is a global technology leader with more than 83,000 employees on five continents. With over 7,500 people in the UK, operating across defence, space, aerospace, and digital security, we help build a future we can all trust. Thales supports the security and stability of our nation by providing extraordinary technology to our customers, as well as delivering social value to the UK with our products and services.
Systems Engineering Manager - Sea Sector Engineering Group
Glasgow LR09
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Systems Engineering Manager (SEM) within Thales Optronics and Missile Electronics (OME). The successful candidate will initially undertake the role of Systems Engineering Manager within the Sea business.
As a SEM you will work in collaboration with the Head of Systems Engineering and the Senior Engineering Delivery Manager for Sea.
In this role you will be responsible for:
- Acting as the Functional Manager for the systems engineering team within Sea responsible for skills development and performance management
- Identifying the required systems engineering skills required to deliver the Sea Product Line
- Identification of re-use opportunities to improve programme deliveries
- Providing Systems Engineering expertise to Sea programmes by reviewing and chairing reviews
- Management of System Engineering work packages and ensuring delivery to cost, schedule and quality
- Working with the Engineering Delivery Manager to defined the project specific and business area systems engineering strategy and the systems engineering resource profile based on engineering estimates to ensure delivery of Sea programmes
- Working with the Senior EDM and Project EDMs to ensure the correct systems engineering resources are deployed onto programmes at the right times
- Work with the HoD SE and Senior EDM to identify the short-term tactical and longer-term resource demands and associated recruitment demands are fulfilled
The successful candidate will have a strong background in Systems Engineering with experience in team management and leading the delivery of work packages. They will be highly business focused with excellent communication skills and have the ability to work in fast moving environments with multiple parallel objectives. Knowledge and experience of Sea products is essential to this role.
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following, aligned to the Thales Leadership Behavioural Model:
- acting with agility to ensure that the business objectives remain in focus
- dealing with multiple strands of complexity to achieve business objectives
- engaging with stakeholders to achieve a common goal
- supporting the development of others to ensure we continuously improve for our customers
This role will work closely with the Head of Systems Engineering and the Senior Engineering Delivery Manager for Sea. This role will report to both the Head of Systems Engineering and the Sea Sector Senior Engineering Delivery Manager.
Core Benefits:
On offer is a competitive salary and benefits package, which includes;
- Performance-related bonus
- Half day every Friday, usually finishing around 13:00
- 28 days annual leave (plus bank holidays) plus opportunity to buy up to 40 hours/year (pro rata)
- 24 hours volunteering paid for
- Private healthcare (grade dependent)
- Pension scheme
- Life cover24/7 Employee Assistance Program and access to mental wellbeing app
- Employee discount shopping schemes on major brands and retailers
- Gym membership discounts
- You can read about some of our other benefits here: UK benefits | Thales Group
Connect with Fiona Tal, Talent Acquisition Partner #LI-FT1 who is eager to explore together with you this exciting opportunity.
Security Clearance Requirement:
Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, many of our roles are subject to security restrictions. This role requires Security Clearance (SC). It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment.
To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks.
Please visit the UKSV website for further guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.
At Thales, we ensure equal opportunities, pay and working conditions for all. The benefits we offer include private medical insurance, buying or selling annual leave, cycle to work schemes, employee discounts, paid volunteering day, stocks and shares, annual bonus and much more depending on the role. Read more about our benefits here.
We are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued for who they are and the unique strengths they bring. Discover more about our programmes, employee networks, wellbeing policies, and inclusive features here.
If this role isn’t quite right for you, we encourage you to join our talent community where your details will be shared with our recruitment teams for other potential opportunities. Join the Talent Community here.
Join Thales in the UK – Innovate with us and shape the future!
Skills Required
- Strong background in Systems Engineering
- Experience in team management and leading delivery of work packages
- Knowledge and experience of Sea (naval) products
- Ability to define systems engineering strategy, resource profiling and deployment
- Experience reviewing and chairing systems engineering reviews and identifying reuse opportunities
- Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills
- Eligible for and able to obtain and maintain UK Security Clearance (SC); advantageous if currently held
- UK residency history to support SC (generally 5 years; in some cases 3 of last 5 years)
Thales Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Thales and has not been reviewed or approved by Thales.
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Retirement Support — Retirement plans with employer contributions and matches, profit sharing, and share purchase opportunities are emphasized across multiple regions. These elements are positioned as competitive components of total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Generous PTO that increases with tenure, paid holidays, and paid military, maternity, and paternity leave are described. This breadth supports work–life balance across locations.
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Flexible Benefits — Hybrid work options, flexible schedules, and parental supports such as childcare benefits and leave for sick children are available in several markets. Flexibility is presented as a core part of the employee experience.
Thales Insights
What We Do
Thales is a global high technology leader investing in digital and “deep tech” innovations – connectivity, big data, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and quantum technology – to build a future we can all trust, which is vital to the development of our societies. The company provides solutions, services and products that help its customers – businesses, organisations and states – in the defence, aeronautics, space, transportation and digital identity and security markets to fulfil their critical missions, by placing humans at the heart of the decision-making process.
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