Profile
Lauren Baddeley
My CV
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Education:
I went to Kirkhill Primary School, near Inverness in Scotland.
I then went to Ellon Academy in Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Finally I went to the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland where I studied Computer and Electronic Systems.
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Qualifications:
I studied the following Standard Grades:
English, Maths, Art, Technological Studies, Information Systems, French, PhysicsI then studied the following Highers:
English, Maths, Technological Studies, Physics, Information Systems, French, ChemistryThen I did the following Advanced Highers:
Maths, PhysicsI then got an MEng (Masters of Engineering) in Computer and Electronic Systems from the University of Strathclyde.
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Work History:
While at school, I got a part time job at Tesco working as a Customer Assistant on the checkouts. This gave me valuable experience of working as part of a team, providing customer service and stock taking. It boosted my confidence when speaking to new people. I worked here in the evenings and on weekends for 3 years.
I then got a job working as a Sales Assistant part time in Primark. I worked there for 2 years while I was at university to help pay my bills.
During my 3rd and 4th year, and my 4th and 5th years at university, I got a summer placement working at a large government organisation, where I started to work on stuff related to my degree. I got to program in C and Java, do a little bit of hardware design and try my hand at project management.
After I graduated from university, I worked at GE Aviation for 3 years. I started on their graduate programme for 2 years, where we got to move around the business and try different projects for 9 months at a time, learning about what we liked and didn’t like. I was involved in projects for the Boeing air planes, working on their fuel management system.
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Current Job:
I now work at Amiosec and have been for the last 3 years. I am a Senior Software Engineer, working mostly in embedded C but I also develop code in C++, C# and Python. I work on different research projects, lasting anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months. I am a Scrum Master for our AltoCrypt Stik teams, and I am also a line manager for our graduates. In addition to my work, I manage our STEM and university engagement projects, and this year we worked with the NCSC’s Cyber Schools Hub project.
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About Me:
I’m a Software Engineer living in Bristol, and I enjoy watching rugby and travelling.
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Read more
I am originally from Scotland but I now live in Bristol with my husband. I have been a Software Engineer for 6 years now, after graduating from university in 2014.
I am a huge fan of rugby, and love to watch the Six Nations, supporting the Scotland team. Last year I travelled to Japan for the Rugby World Cup which was an amazing experience. We went as part of our honeymoon and travelled all across Japan visiting the amazing cities.
I love to travel when possible, always going to new countries to explore. Places that I have been in Europe include Prague, Budapest, Amsterdam, Paris, Venice, Florence, Stuttgart and Berlin. Outside of Europe I’ve travelled to America and visited Florida and Kentucky, Ecuador in South America, The Gambia and Morocco in Africa, and Japan in Asia. When we can travel again, I would love to visit Thailand in South East Asia!
I have started to get back into reading again, and am currently re-reading the Harry Potter series – I am on the Prisoner of Azkaban just now. I also love to watch TV and movies – my favourite movies are The Fifth Element, Jurassic Park and Hocus Pocus!
I also love to play video and board games. With video games I love anything to do with zombies – my favourite games are Resident Evil. I also like to play Gears of War and Borderlands. For board games, I love to play Settlers of Catan, Zombie Flux, and 7 Wonders Duel.
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Read more
I have been working at Amiosec for the last 3 years as a Software Engineer.
Amiosec is a UK technology company specialising in the design and development of secure solutions for government and commercial organisations. Focusing on the needs of our customers, with innovation at the forefront of everything we do, we aim to deliver cost-effective secure technology solutions through internally and externally funded research and development programmes.
As a Software Engineer, I work on lots of different projects at Amiosec. My work includes gathering requirements from customers, designing a solution to their problem, coding the solution and testing it to make sure it works as expected. The main product I’ve worked on while at Amiosec is on their AltoCrypt Stik product – essentially a small USB that enables mobile access to secure networks, allowing people to work remotely from home!
As well as working on research and development projects, I take part in STEM and University engagement, where we get to make cool activities and workshops that we take to schools and event days to encourage people to think about a career in STEM.
We also take part in team days and charity events, such as hosting Macmillan Coffee Mornings at work to raise money for charity by baking (and eating) lots of cakes!
See below for some pictures of our offices, receiving an award for our STEM contributions and our Macmillan coffee morning!
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My Typical Day:
I start work between 7.30 and 8.30 am (depending on how long I sleep in for!). I have a stand-up with my team at 9am, which involves us talking about what we did yesterday and what we are going to work on today. Then the rest of the day is spent either coding, researching into new technology, writing reports, organising tasks or replying to emails.
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Read more
I start work between 7.30 and 8.30 am (depending on how long I sleep in for!).
I have a stand-up with my team at 9am, which involves us talking about what we did yesterday and what we are going to work on today, as well as any issues we might have that we need help with. It is a quick 15 minute chat which helps us to start our day.
I then spend the morning working on today’s tasks – these might be researching into a new technology, coding an answer to a particular problem, writing a report or organising the tasks for the team.
At 12.30pm I have lunch – lately with the weather being so nice I’ve had it outside in a picnic style so that I can get some sunshine!
The afternoon is then spent continuing working on my tasks for the day. This might include having meetings with other team members or customers, replying to emails or designing solutions to a problem.
I also organise STEM activities and events, and I engage with the university to organise projects and placements for students. I don’t do this everyday however.
I then finish up work between 5 and 6pm.
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Thoughtful, Organised and Passionate
What did you want to be after you left school?
When I was in Primary School, I wanted to be a teacher. Then when I was at Secondary School, I wanted to be an accountant.
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Generally I was a teachers pet, but I do remember getting into trouble at primary school - my friend and I were pretending to be in the olympics, throwing discusses around (but actually they were just really big stones from outside) and I nearly hit another student in the head!
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Nickelback
What's your favourite food?
Macaroni Cheese
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
I would wish to have lots of money so that I could buy houses all around the world, I would wish that I was less lazy, and I would wish for the world to make more of an effort about battling climate change.
Tell us a joke.
There are only 10 kinds of people in this world: those who know binary and those who don’t.
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