Jennifer loves her family. And aircraft.
Jennifer is a systems engineer. At the moment she is on parental leave from her job at Saab. This suits her perfectly since she is happy to spend time with her family while renovating their newly purchased house. Also, she appreciate spending time flying aircraft with friends in the local aviation club.
Jennifer is a qualified pilot and holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree. The fact that she got a job as a systems engineer at Saab , working with Gripen, is something that did not come as a surprise to her friends.
“Being involved in developing functions that will be used – for real – is incredibly inspiring."
According to Jennifer, nothing beats working with aeronautics. Gripen, that goes under the epithet “The Game Changer”, is one of the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft. In her daily work she is part of a team ensuring that this product retains its unique position in the air. But what Jennifer considers most impressive with Saab is that both manufacturing and technological development occur in the same place.
"What I find impressive with Saab is that both manufacturing and technological development occur in the same place."
“Being involved in developing functions that will be used – for real – is incredibly inspiring. Hearing and seeing the aircraft just outside my office window only increases my motivation.”
Work-life balance also a project
A typical workday mainly consists of working in a close-knit team to complete various tasks. The challenges are sometimes formidable and the problems can be complex – but at the same time there is a lot of laughter during coffee breaks.
“The thing that motivates me to go to work – in addition to being part of the development of Gripen – is meeting my colleagues and tackling tasks together with them.”
“The thing that motivates me to go to work is meeting my colleagues and tackling tasks together with them.”
Together with colleagues at Saab, you are both trusted and expected to be involved in finding innovative solutions to problems. Therefore, employees must feel inspired and work in an environment in which you can be your best individual self. For Jennifer, being her best self currently means having a good balance in life, both at work and at home. Many can probably relate, over the space of a few years you will find yourself: Having a new job. Making a career. Buying a house. Settling down. Having children. And that’s exactly where Jennifer is right now. For this all to work, it’s important to find solutions to problems and challenges, which is one of the qualities Jennifer possesses – not just in her work at Saab and with Gripen, but it is also a quality that helps her in her personal life.
"My ability to find solutions also comes in handy in my personal life, my favorite example is that I managed to buy a house in the beginning of the pandemic, despite a shaky market. And I don’t regret it."
Pushing boundaries
As an employer, Saab encourages us to push our boundaries, and doing so with complex products suits Jennifer perfectly. She, of course, considers her ability to figure out complex tasks and issues, something that she exemplifies with flying an aircraft:
“I could easily explain to you how you can land an aircraft, using only the instruments.”
“I could easily explain to you how you can land an aircraft, using only the instruments.”
Right now, Jennifer is devoting all her abilities to her family. But at work, a certain intelligent fighter aircraft is awaiting her talent and commitment when she returns. Of course, her eager colleagues also awaits for her to come back and to join in with her laughter during the coffee breaks.
3 questions
Best advice: Be curious and ask a lot of questions!
Most inspiring: Being able to work at the forefront of technology.
Appreciates: Spending time with my family and flying together with friends.