Claire Hazleton has worked at Siemens Healthineers for over eight years, starting her career as a Systems Engineer in 2012 before her current position as a Senior Engineer at Siemens Healthineers Magnet Technology in Oxford.
How would you describe your personality in three words?
Enthusiastic, friendly and dedicated.
What are the main duties of your role as Senior Engineer?
The majority of my work is running tests to increase the technology readiness level of new ideas that we want to include in future magnet design.
What attracted you to work for Siemens Healthineers Magnet Technology?
It mattered a lot to me to do work that was both interesting from a technical perspective, but also had a positive impact.
What does your typical working day look like?
It can be very varied, which I like! I enjoy getting to work with a wide range of people from across the business on a daily basis.
If you were to describe the culture of the business in a few words, which five would you use?
Innovative, passionate, responsible, world class
What advice would you give to young people considering STEM careers?
At school it wasn't obvious to me just how transferable studies in STEM are. You can go on to be an academic but there are so many other opportunities that you might not expect. I would advise researching the variety of jobs STEM studies can lead to.
What are the greatest challenges you face?
We use a lot of helium which, as a commodity, has had significant price fluctuations in recent years. This forces us to be innovative in both finding ways of using helium more efficiently and reducing our usage.
Can you tell us about a role model who has inspired you over your career?
To be honest when I started I didn’t see many women in STEM at a senior level, but I find it inspiring to see how that is completely changing at intake level.
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
Knowing that the products we make have a direct positive impact on the patients who use them is by far, the most rewarding part of my job.
Do you have any hobbies outside of work?
I enjoy running and volunteering at my local parkrun.
If you could choose one hobby that now seems out of your reach, what would you take up and why?
I learnt to play the piano when I was younger and enjoyed the challenge and reward I got from it. I never really found the time to keep it up.
If you were encouraging others to work at Magnet Technology, what would you say?
I feel very lucky to be able to carry out meaningful and stimulating work surrounded by colleagues who are passionate about what we do.