Having an opportunity to work for such an impactful company like Siemens Healthineers can truly be a very rewarding career move.

Training & Development Manager, Sophie Cotton, attests that Siemens Healthineers has certainly helped her to develop impressive skills and advance her career. "I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Siemens Healthineers as an employer for all women," says Sophie. "I am very grateful for the opportunities that Siemens Healthineers has provided for me, and it has certainly given me a sense of pride working for a company that has such positive and significant impact on people's lives across the world."

Supporting Siemens Healthineers Apprenticeship Scheme

Sophie has been working for Siemens Healthineers for around three years. "I started in the business as a Training Coordinator where I supported the Apprenticeship Scheme. I was fairly quickly developed and mentored by the business, and I soon progressed to be the Training & Development Manager," explains Sophie.

Her role now includes managing all the Field Service Engineer Apprentices and further Apprentices within the Service operation. "It is hugely rewarding to recruit apprentices into the business and to watch them grow and develop into experienced, professional, reliable engineers. The equipment these Apprentices are training on is often life-changing machines, and I’m very proud to be a part of this," says Sophie.

"It’s fantastic to visit the Apprentices in some of our key hospitals and to watch them put the skills they have learned through their Apprenticeship into practice."

Sharing stories of success and celebrating those who've gone the extra mile

Sophie's role is quite varied. "Throughout the four-year Engineering Apprenticeship at Siemens Healthineers, there are different milestones to reach," explains Sophie. "It’s very important that I ensure the Apprentices are on track and are learning all the necessary skills required of them - whether it’s Level 2, Level 3 or HNC stage of their programme."

One of the most enjoyable parts of Sophie's role is arranging the annual Siemens Healthineers Apprentice Forum and Graduation. These events are significant in the Apprentice journey and enable Sophie to share stories of success, and to celebrate those Apprentices who have gone the extra mile. "It’s also a time for us as a company to celebrate and graduate the Apprentices who have successfully passed their Apprenticeship and who have gone on to become Field Service Engineers. At this time, we also welcome and onboard new Apprentices into the scheme," explains Sophie. During these events, Sophie arranges for the Apprentices to expand their engineering knowledge by visiting customer sites and the company's manufacturing sites.

The impact of Sophie's work is significant

"The Apprenticeship programme is designed to mould and develop early talent into well-trained, confident and professional Engineers," says Sophie. "The outcome of this means that they progress into fully qualified, experienced Engineers who work on life-saving and life-changing equipment. I am very proud to be part of the process, and it's rewarding to see the team graduate at the end of their Apprenticeship, knowing that I have been on their development journey with them throughout their whole Apprenticeship."

Some of Sophie's work is very challenging due to the physical location of colleagues, and there are many aspects she enjoys that truly stretch her. "With the Apprenticeship team expanding, my role and work are naturally getting busier. The team is spread across England, so I make the use of Microsoft Teams to catch up with them virtually. However, I would certainly enjoy getting out to see everyone in person more."

A passion for working to support colleagues

Sophie started her career working in Human Resources (HR), where she identified that her real passion was for working within a 'Learning & Development' remit. "The UK Government introduced the Apprenticeship Levy, so the business that I worked for at the time, tasked me with fully understanding, utilising and leveraging the opportunity. I then went on to working for an airport in a role that focused solely on Apprenticeships, but due to COVID and the travel industry being hit the hardest, I needed to move on. Thankfully, I was successful in securing my wonderful role working for Siemens Healthineers."

Siemens Healthineers work culture has a great vibe

Enjoying the work culture at Siemens Healthineers, Sophie says that: "Siemens Healthineers is focused on ensuring that everyone in the business is treated fairly - no matter their age, gender, ethnic background, etc. The company hosts regular talks on Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (ED&I) topics, and there are often insightful guest speakers for these events. Both professionally and personally, I feel the culture at Siemens Healthineers has a great family feel to it which may seem somewhat surprising working for such a huge company."

Being authentic and having a passion for your work

Offering her advice to further women potentially considering a role with the Siemens Healthineers, Sophie suggests that there are some key skills and qualities that tend to be thought of very highly by the company. "I would encourage any women considering a role with Siemens Healthineers to absolutely go for it. The best quality that you can bring is to be yourself and to be passionate at what you do," encourages Sophie.

Highlighting a great piece of career advice she was once given, Sophie says: "I once read a quote from Steve Jobs which said, 'The only way to do great work is to love what you do.’ I completely agree, and everyone who knows me inside and outside of Siemens Healthineers, absolutely knows that I love my job. I have been recognised by the company on many occasions for my passion, and I certainly agree that if you love your job then you’ll be great at it."

Hiking, walking, kayaking - and an energetic Cocker Spaniel

When Sophie is not working, she prefers to spend her downtime enjoying visits to the Lake District, a beautiful mountainous region and national park in North West England. "It’s through working for Siemens Healthineers that I actually found my love for hiking. I was involved in a charity event where myself, and other members of the Field Service team climbed Scafell Pike, which is the highest point in England. We then went on to climb Snowdon at midnight. This triggered my love for walking, and I've since started the Wainwrights Challenge, that sees us climb all 214 English Lake District fells. I have 17 down, and only a further 197 to go! And I also really enjoy kayaking with my Cocker Spaniel who enjoys it all just as much, if not more than, me."

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