CORPORATE SERVICES PROFILES
Helen
Click here to listen to Helen's words - spoken by an actor
I've been with the organisation for 17 years, firstly as an Admin Officer before moving on to a variety of other jobs. For the last seven years I've been working on the Corporate Services side and specialising in the field.
I've worked in personnel twice, dealing with career development and promotions, and also handling the annual appraisal system. Working in recruitment was wonderful as you get to meet all the new candidates, and I'm currently in our Terms and Conditions section to concentrate on Pay and Conditions of Service.
There's a huge variety of other jobs here. Had I wanted to, I could have chosen to join teams that focus on anything from budgets and finance to procurement and estate management. You certainly don't have to choose your area and stay within it, not by any means.
Tony
I left university with an Upper Second in Modern History, joined the civil service a year later, moved down to London and ended up in a specialist procurement job . After obtaining my professional procurement qualifications (Membership of the Chartered Institute of Supply Management - MCIPS) I applied for a procurement job with SIS.
As a procurement specialist, I hadn't thought about SIS as a career path previously. I was intrigued to know what the organisation was about and what sort of out of the ordinary things they might buy. I found the recruitment and selection process, and the vetting in particular, to be long and involved - however, this also gave me assurance that the Service took seriously who they let through the door and I was pleased that they made such efforts with recruiting.
I started in 2005 and I have worked purely in procurement, buying a range of services and goods. Although my current job has a lot in common with other procurement roles, I've been involved in a number of novel and cutting-edge projects that I would not have had the chance to work on otherwise.
SIS is a relatively small organisation in comparison to other places I have worked in, and there is almost a 'family' feel to it. Once you're through the door SIS is very open - you are encouraged to be an active member of SIS and take an interest in its work. You have the opportunity to make as much as you want out of a career here.
Joan
I work currently as an office manager in a team responsible for SIS work in several countries overseas. My role is very varied - I have responsiblity for the team's finances, intelligence records and other resources as well as acting as line manager for three Administrators. The best part of this job is that I have the opportunity to get involved in a wide variety of work. This gives me plenty of insight into many areas of the Service's activities and it is rewarding to know that my work here contributes to success both here and overseas.
This job has allowed me to use the experience that I gained in my previous jobs both here and before I joined the Service. I used to work as an administrator in a bank but, when I came here, I was encouraged to extend my range of skills and have now worked in record keeping, premises management and as a trainer of IT. My aim is to follow a career that continues to offer this variety of challenges.