Wireless Connectivity Technical Lead in Reading

In fast changing markets, customers worldwide rely on Thales. Thales is a business where brilliant people from all over the world come together to share ideas and inspire each other. In aerospace, transportation, defence, security and space, our architects design innovative solutions that make our tomorrow's possible.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space.

Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

Location: Reading

Hours of work: 37 Hrs/Week (Monday-Friday) – Minimum 3 days at office

We have an exciting opportunity in our Research, Technology and Solution Innovation business. Due to a rapid period of growth, we are looking to add to the team a Wireless Connectivity Technical Lead with an architectural and team leading background. You will work in an applied research environment to investigate and develop new concepts and technologies across a wide range of Thales’s application areas.

The type of activities will include:

• Technical steering and management of research projects covering a range of wireless connectivity topics.
• Engaging with internal stakeholders to shape our research agenda, through understanding and influencing business strategy and customer requirements.
• Engaging with external stakeholders of research and innovation projects, including end users, customers, funding bodies, sub-contractors, suppliers, etc.
• Working with the research team to design novel wireless connectivity solution architectures.
• Designing and delivering proof-of-concept demonstrations of advanced connectivity solutions to validate and communicate their impact, typically with a small team of software and product engineers.
• Supporting bids and proposals, both internal and external; evaluating value propositions and generating new ideas.

The focus of this role is on wireless connectivity at the system level, developing solutions that employ Thales and third-party components. The systems are typically safety or security critical in nature (requiring high assurance) and involving distributed IoT / Edge platforms with constrained communications, power and computing resources.

Key Responsibilities and Tasks:

As a Wireless Connectivity Technical Lead you will:

• Provide expertise on wireless connectivity solutions and architectures, supporting technical strategy around early concepts or challenging issues.
• Generate and evaluate new ideas that bring value to Thales business lines.
• Drive engagement with internal and external stakeholders, shaping ideas, agreeing outcomes.
• Manage and contribute to bids for research and technology projects, as well as the realisation of proof-of-concepts and integration projects to validate and demonstrate new ideas (typically small teams of 3-5 people).
• Work within a group of other research staff, as well as being self-motivated to work individually, and be flexible to adapt into new research areas and ways of working.
• Share knowledge within a motivated and curious technical team.

About You

Experience:

The successful candidate should have the following experience:

• Technical research and innovation in wireless connectivity.
• Technical team leadership.
• Stakeholder engagement.
• Management of medium sized projects.
• Broad grounding in the fundamentals of wireless connectivity from university courses and industrial experience, spanning SATCOM and terrestrial technologies.
• Experimental/practical work on wireless connectivity, with demonstrated ability to contribute at the concept and architectural level. An understanding of how wireless connectivity concepts are realised within an architecture is essential.

Additionally, the successful candidate should have experience in some of the following:

• Domain specific wireless technologies, e.g. in defence, civil security or avionics safety services.
• Wireless connectivity in defence settings.
• Cloud technologies and architectures, with application to connectivity.
• Bidding for research funding.

Qualifications:

Because of the advanced nature of our work, the successful candidate will typically have an honours degree, a master’s degree, or a PhD in any of the following disciplines:

• Electronic Engineering
• Communications Engineering
• Computer Science
• Software Engineering
• Telecommunications
• Physics
• Mathematics

In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment, if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

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