Promoted by Leidos
Expanding professional opportunities for graduate development is critical to supporting long-term success of Australia's defence industry capability – for Leidos it is also critical for keeping graduates engaged and committed to redefining what's possible.
As an information technology, engineering and science company, Leidos Australia is focused on engaging, growing and developing the next generation of Software Engineers, System Engineers, Systems Administrators and Project Managers and other critical functional roles. Our Graduate offering is key to the growth of our organisation and of Australian Industry. Our Identity as an employer is based on the mantra ‘Redefine Possible’, so with that in mind, we were not about to let the current restrictions of COVID-19 prevent us from celebrating with our next generation of graduates at our welcome event.
Each year in the time between new graduates accepting our offer of employment and their start date - early the following year - we invite them to a networking event as a way to meet and greet with their soon to be peers, managers and Executive Team. Due to the complexity of restrictions surrounding COVID-19, we had to adapt our welcome to a virtual event. On Wednesday 16th September, Leidos welcomed 28 graduates to our 2021 Graduate offering as part of a virtual games night.
“Supporting the development of graduates through the business is a great passion of mine,” says Paul Chase, Chief Executive for Leidos Australia. “I am proud to say that today, as part of my Senior Leadership team I have some of our very first graduates that joined the company. It’s important that we continue to invest our time and resources in developing these individuals and providing long-lasting career opportunities.”
Chase and several of his Executive team joined the event, which commenced in smaller groups for a more intimate meet and greet session by line of business and was followed with all-in virtual bingo. Graduates also received a welcome package from the Leidos Lockdown Fairy, known to be spreading a little light across Victoria.
Ali McPheat, Vice President Human Resources, noted that connecting virtually with future employees is not a foreign concept for Leidos. “We’ve been engaging with our people through Enboarder for two years now and have received incredibly positive feedback from our new starters and teams. We want to ensure that our people feel connected, even before they officially start with us, so moving forward with the Graduate welcome in the virtual world was an easy decision.”
Enboarder is a workflow tool that streamlines and automates the onboarding process from the day a candidate accepts our job offer to well after they join. It not only helps our new team members feel connected and engaged even before they start, but it also acts as a virtual coach for busy managers by guiding them through their responsibilities.
Since 2017, Leidos has employed 127 graduates and we are actively growing our diverse talent. All of our graduates are employed on a permanent basis and are provided support, training and networking opportunities along with an assigned mentor and buddy to help navigate around our organisation and develop their skills and knowledge across industry. At the end of the program, graduates further develop their strengths and capabilities with the aim of progressing into technical or managerial positions. We invest heavily in our graduates ensuring they are set up for success. They are, after all, our future industry leaders.