The Ultimate Career Hack: competition winners secure tech jobs

The unique recruitment challenge encouraged anyone with an interest in technology, gaming or digital skills to apply, regardless of qualifications or direct experience.  Out of hundreds of entries from across the UK, 20 teams competed in the “HackaFuture” final – a two-day hackathon focused on net zero energy and nuclear. All eight members of the two winning teams have been offered a permanent position as Digital & Technology Specialists with AtkinsRéalis, based at the company’s new North West Hub in central Manchester.

The event, part of the Manchester Digital Skills Festival, offered CV-boosting opportunities for all finalists including a technology showcase featuring robotics, immersive and Extended Reality technologies alongside sessions on soft skills, charting career paths and tips on developing a career in digital. All finalists will be considered for other live and future roles at AtkinsRéalis and offered career mentors to support their future plans.

Sam Stephens, Digital Director for Nuclear at AtkinsRéalis, said: “The ‘HackaFuture’ is the first recruitment challenge of its kind for a sector that might not be front of mind for those interested in digital careers. We’ve had a phenomenal response to the challenge and hopefully helped to reframe nuclear and engineering as a whole: this is an exciting industry that needs digital skillsets to help develop new solutions to complex challenges for a net zero future.

“Our teams are already deploying technology on major projects across the country and it’s exciting to think what the successful candidates will be able to contribute when they apply their creative mindsets to our clients’ challenges in their new roles at AtkinsRéalis.”

The competition attracted entries from hundreds of people across the UK from all age groups and backgrounds, ranging from babysitters and software developers to cark park attendants and data scientists. More than a fifth of the finalists are current university students in Manchester, Salford and across the North West.

The winning entries

The hackathon challenged finalists to build data solutions that could incorporate AI, robotics and gaming engines, with judges so impressed at the standard of entries that two teams were jointly awarded the prize.

1. The “Straw Pirates” team explored how to use live or recorded video footage captured on sites by humans and robots to improve safety on site. They used novel techniques to create an interactive experience on a video gaming platform accessed through VR, building a slick interface and programme over the course of the weekend. Using 360^o video and novel techniques, users could navigate through a construction site and identify hazards – the type of solution that could be used to train workers before visiting sites, or deployed by sites to conduct site safety assessments virtually
2. The “Rebel Innovators” team, combined technical skills to develop an AI model to help predict when equipment failures and issues may occur. ‘Predictive maintenance’ is already being adopted by the sector, using machine learning to prevent breakdowns and improve the performance of technology, but the team explored how solutions used in the automotive sector could be applied in the nuclear sector. The team impressed the judges with their machine learning model with an impressive user experience and market strategy behind it.

The hackathon gave all finalists a glimpse of the type of technology they might be developing once in role: from digital design and virtual site access to deploying robotic dogs and drones, AtkinsRéalis uses a large range of technologies to help deliver nuclear projects more efficiently, safely and sustainably, with more than 500 patented solutions already developed.

For more information about digital roles at AtkinsRéalis, vacancies based in the Piccadilly Place office, or to find out more about the company’s apprenticeship schemes, visit careers.atkinsrealis.com.