Innovation Engineer

Department: Electricity Transmission - Non-Operations

Job Function: Engineering

Innovation will play a key role in the path towards achieving net zero, and we're adopting creative solutions and cutting-edge technology in order to meet this challenge.

As an Innovation Engineer, you'll be a crucial member of the Innovation team within the Strategic Infrastructure (SI) business unit, responsible for driving technological advancements and leading innovation projects. You will work closely with the Innovation Manager to execute innovation strategies, foster a culture of innovation, and contribute to the transformation of our organisation. You'll play a critical role in shaping the future of the SI business unit and driving the energy transition.

Your primary focus will be on strategizing, ideating, and supporting the delivery of disruptive innovation projects. This will involve staying up-to-date with energy, technology, and entrepreneurship trends, feeding into and implementing innovation strategies, and collaborating with stakeholders such as major project delivery teams, other innovation teams within National Grid, and external parties.

In this role you can enjoy our hybrid working from office and home. You'll be flexible to travelling to our Warwick or London office as required.

• Help execute an innovation strategy aligned with the goals and objectives of the SI business unit.
• Identify and evaluate emerging technologies, industry trends, best practices, technological advancements, and market opportunities to drive innovation and enhance project performance.
• Lead the end-to-end innovation process, including idea generation, concept development, prototyping, testing, and implementation.
• Lead and facilitate ideation sessions, brainstorming activities, and innovation workshops to generate and prioritise ideas.
• Promote a culture of innovation by fostering collaboration, creativity, and continuous improvement among SI delivery teams.
• Collaborate with SI delivery teams and cross-functional teams to ensure successful execution of innovation projects.
• Collaborate with other innovation teams across National Grid on joint innovation projects, enabling testing and acceleration when applicable to SI projects.
• Establish and maintain partnerships with external stakeholders, including technology vendors, research institutions, and industry experts, to leverage external expertise and drive innovation.
• Capture learnings to progressively develop pilots, monitor and evaluate the impact and effectiveness of innovation initiatives, track key performance indicators (KPIs), and provide regular reports to senior management.

What we do isn't just important - it's essential. That's why we look to recruit experts in their field. In this case, we're looking for someone who has:

• Strong commercial acumen, entrepreneurial mindset, problem-solving skills, creativity, and bureaucratic resiliency.
• In-depth understanding of global energy trends, particularly emerging technologies.
• Technical expertise in grid technologies, including onshore or offshore transmission, AC/DC transmission, and grid technologies.
• Experience with innovation in major electricity transmission projects in the early development through to construct and commission phases is desirable.
• Experience in bringing compelling ideas to life from ideation to the approval of business cases.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to influence and build relationships at all levels internally and externally.
• A relevant BSc Degree, or equivalent, in an Engineering discipline.
• Membership of a relevant professional body such as IET.

A competitive salary between £51,000 - £65,000 - dependent on capability.

As well as your base salary, you will receive a bonus based on personal and company performance and a competitive contributory pension scheme where we will double match your contribution to a maximum company contribution of 12%. You will also have access to a number of flexible benefits such as a share incentive plan, salary sacrifice car and technology schemes, support via employee assistance lines and matched charity giving to name a few.

National Grid Strategic Infrastructure is a Business Unit created to propel our grid forward to deliver in 5 years, what has been achieved in the previous 30. By 2030 we aim to have 17 new major infrastructure projects live across England, Scotland and Wales.

Here at National Grid, we connect homes and businesses to power, making sure supply and demand match each other. We make sure the lights are on in schools, operating theatres, and sporting arenas; we're thousands of people working on behalf of millions of people.

Our investment in Strategic Infrastructure via The Great Grid Upgrade will mean more home-grown power, greater energy security and a cleaner future.

Whatever your role, wherever you work with us, you'll help us hit stretching targets and achieve our far-reaching goal: to secure, clean energy that supports our world far into the future. Here, you will be at the heart of energy.

This role closes on 28 February 2025 at 23:59, however we encourage candidates to submit their application as early as possible and not wait until the published closing date as this can vary. Interviews to be held week commencing 10 March.

At National Grid, we work towards the highest standards in everything we do, including how we support, value and develop our people. Our aim is to encourage and support employees to thrive and be the best they can be. We celebrate the difference people can bring into our organisation, and welcome and encourage applicants with diverse experiences and backgrounds, and offer flexible and tailored support, at home and in the office.

Our goal is to drive, develop and operate our business in a way that results in a more inclusive culture. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, the innovation from diverse teams & perspectives and business need. We are committed to building a workforce so we can represent the communities we serve and have a working environment in which each individual feels valued, respected, fairly treated, and able to reach their full potential.