Suzanne Rutland – Senior HR Advisor Learning & Development

I’ve been working at Cubic for seven years now – I originally joined on a two-week contract as part of the HR and Facilities Admin team. I ended up staying on, and got more and more involved in the HR side of things. After a while, Cubic paid for me to study for a CIPD, which I then qualified in. It was a real investment on their behalf, and it’s typical of the commitment they make to their employees.

Today, I mainly work in generalist HR, providing wide-ranging support to managers and staff across the business including the company’s Workshop, Service Centre and Project Management functions. There’s no such thing as a typical day in my job and I deal with all sorts of issues including personal staff matters, operational situations, recruitment, interviewing and staff counselling. I’m always kept busy, and there’s a new challenge every day.

As part of my Learning and Development remit, I manage the company’s new Graduate Development programme, which involves the recruitment and development of two graduates. During an 18 month induction, they spend time in a number of Cubic’s departments, getting a real insight into the work we do. When this time’s up, they’ll be allocated a role in a specific area of the business, and will have gained an in-depth understanding of the company as a whole.

I’d say that Cubic’s family ethos makes it a special and unique place to work. The culture’s exceptionally supportive, and there’s a real one-for-all-and-all-for-one mentality that underpins everything we do – this is reflected in the high level of morale, as well as in the low staff turnover. Everyone who works here is proud of our involvement with the high-profile Oyster system. Personally, however, I’m just as proud of the way we all work hard on behalf of our customers and our team.