Latest news : Women into engineering

Johnson Controls Automotive (UK) Ltd is helping to drive women to pursue careers in engineering with the help of the sector skills council Semta.

Johnson Controls chose to work with Semta after hearing about the organisation’s pioneering Women and Work programme, which aims to help firms to meet their need for skilled employees by attracting, developing and retaining female staff.

With a 1,500, strong workforce across eight UK facilities, Johnson Controls employs just 160 women with the majority of management positions held by men. The Women and Work programme is already making a significant contribution towards redressing the balance.

‘The Women and Work programme has not only provided training opportunities that would not otherwise have been identified across the business, it has created a network of females that are thinking about their career options and are fulfilling their potential – this increases female employee engagement and hence adds-value to the business,’ said Sara Andrews, UK Human Resources Manager at Johnson Controls.

As well as helping women in the business to further their careers, the programme is helping Johnson Controls to become more competitive by equipping female employees with the skills they need to help drive the business forward.

In addition to formal training in areas such as IT and communication, it has also enabled those taking part to identify their own training needs.

‘Our own research has shown that the UK will need more than 200,000 recruits between 2010-2016, to replace those who retire and to meet the new demand from rapidly growing sectors such as advanced manufacturing. Women will play an increasingly important role in filling these skills gaps in an area traditionally dominated by their male colleagues. The Women and Work programme will equip them with the skills they need to progress their own careers and contribute to business improvement,’ said Philip Whiteman, Semta Chief Executive.