Cougar Automation: Join us

Working for Cougar Automation is like working for no other system integrator. Our mission is to deliver a fantastic service to our customers. To make our customers unreasonably happy! We can only do this if our Cats (the name for all of us here at Cougar Automation) are happy too! You try delivering great service when you're unhappy!

So what do you need to be a Cougar Cat? Well, the most important thing is that you get a buzz from understanding and delivering service excellence to your customers. This attitude of wanting to excel by delivering fantastic service to our customers is essential. If you have this, you are well on the way to having what it takes to becoming a Cougar Cat.

So why is it so different to work at Cougar Automation. Well, for a start one very obvious thing is we have no walls (that's internal walls: obviously we like to keep the wind and rain out). Everyone sits in the same open plan area at the same types of desk. That includes the Managing Director. The word 'department' is banned. We get on and work as teams to get the job done for our customers.

We strongly believe in work/home balance. That's why we operate flexitime so that you can work hours that fit in with your commitments (or struggles to get up). That's why we allow all Cats to work from home. And that's why in addition to 25 days paid leave (plus 8 bank holidays) we offer unlimited unpaid leave. Oh, and that's why we don't believe in working silly hours. And if that all sounds a bit relaxed, well that's the idea. If we are relaxed we can concentrate on what really counts: delivering for our customers.

One of our key values is openness. As part of this we share everything about the business with all Cats. Management accounts and customer satisfaction feedback is published monthly to everyone. We hold our Compass Meeting for all Cats every other month to discuss and share information on all aspects of the business. Once a year we hold a Company Day to get all Cats together from both offices to build the team, reflect on the successes of the last year and look to the future.

And what about your boss? Well, we believe that if a leader is to be any good people must want to follow them. So, how do we make sure our leaders have willing followers? Simple, we ask people to pick their own leaders.

We also believe that everyone should take responsibility for continuously developing themselves. Success is all about how well people interact so you will find we put a lot of emphasis on these aspects of development. We also believe in multi-skilling. We can deliver much better value to our customers if we all understand all aspects of what we do. We also put a large emphasis on our Cats gaining technical accreditation for the technology we use.

So, are you still interested in being a Cougar Cat? We hope so. And, if so, take a look at the posts we recruit into: if you think you have what it takes then send us an email to start the ball rolling.

Where can I be a Cougar Cat?

At the moment we have offices in Yorkshire, Warwickshire and Hampshire. If you make the grade you can become a Cougar Cat in any of these three locations right now.

We are also committed to opening offices in more locations so we are closer to more of our customers. So, if you would like to be a Cougar Cat in the North West or the Bristol/Bath area then please do get in contact and you could be part of our continued expansion.

Our Support Engineers deliver our 24/7 support service to our customers. Their mission is to get our customers plant up and running as quickly as possible after a failure. Support is increasingly delivered remotely (VPN or dial up) but we also regularly attend customer sites.

This is a great role for engineers who love fixing things and like variety. As a support engineer you never know what you will be doing the next day (or night). Flexibility is key. Also, you need to keep your head when the pressure is on and logically work through things to find the underlying problem. And of course, you get a buzz from being of service and getting the customer out of a fix.

These are our main engineering roles to deliver projects for our customers. The level of engineering skill and knowledge you have will determine which of the three levels is right for you. So, if you already have relevant industrial system integration experience and love to deliver fantastic solutions to customers then one of these roles may be right for you.

The most important thing for us when recruiting is a persons attitude. Will you go that extra mile to delight the customer. We can train anyone with numerate/technical mind to do the engineering but we can't train you to have the right attitude. So, if you think you have the attitude we are looking for, and have a numerate or technical degree then we would love to hear from you. Previous experience not necessary.

As a Graduate Project Engineer you will work through an initial 3 month training programme before starting on real projects. You will then work towards achieving all of the competencies needed to become a Project Engineer. How long this takes is up to you but you should certainly aim to be promoted within the first 2 years of starting here at Cougar Automation.

Project Manager is probably a bit of a misnomer. Our Project Managers are more like captains of a sports team. On the field playing the game and leading by example. To us, becoming a Project Manager isn't turning your back on engineering, instead it is the embodiment of becoming a rounded professional engineer. Think of Brunel. Was he a leader: of course. But was he still an engineer: absolutely.

Are you a student looking for a work placement? We offer temporary work placements for students either as part of their course or simply as a holiday job. So, if our engineering roles appeal to you and you would like to experience being a Cougar Cat then please do get in contact. To find out more about work placements read this account by Ali of her time on a placement at Cougar Automation.

So, if you are passionate about customer service, relish helping your team and love engineering then we need to talk. Previous project management experience is not necessary. We can teach you how to manage a project. What you do need is the right attitude and a broad understanding of industrial system integration.

If you are excited by what you have read then please do get in contact.

Simply drop us an email.

If you can attach a CV that's great, but if you don't have one at present then just give us a phone number so that we can ring you, together with the role you are interested in and which office you would like to be based from. This will help us to get the right Cat to give you a ring.

Go on, send us an email now!