Partnering with the Armed Forces

AtkinsRéalis Group, is a leading global consultancy with over 80 years' design, engineering and project management expertise. We’re engineering a better future on complex, time-critical projects across security, aerospace and defence, transportation, cities and development, energy, environment, industrial and manufacturing, and water markets.

We are proud to employ more than 150 veterans and 50 reservists, as well as cadet force adult volunteers (CFAVs) and military spouses/partners. These talented individuals contribute considerable transferable experience and expertise – from stakeholder, organizational, leadership and management skills to high levels of professionalism, problem-solving, awareness of health and safety, security awareness and best-practice, and team working.

Over and above being the right thing to do for the nation, the invaluable diversity of talent the Armed Forces community brings to our team is why we signed the Armed Forces Covenant and achieved the Gold Award in the Ministry of Defence’s Employer Recognition Scheme in 2015, which was revalidated in 2020. To enable Atkins to deliver on its pledges and commitments, we created the Partnering with Armed Forces (PwAF) programme led by our Armed Forces Champion and a Programme Manager. In effect, this created Atkins’ first Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I) employee network, of which there are now nine.

PwAF provides leadership and management for our extensive Armed Forces community, so supporting the needs of the business as well as those of its members. PwAF ensures this vibrant community remains connected and active internally and externally. We also help the community to understand their entitlement to benefits and how to access veteran-specific health and well-being support from the NHS and military charities. PwAF works closely with the MOD’s Defence Relationship Management and Reserve Forces and Cadets Association (RFCA) in the Wessex Region.

We also conduct extensive outreach with military resettlement organizations, including the MOD's Career Transition Partnership, BuildForce, Recruit for Spouses, the Forces Employment Charity (and their TechVets programme), Forces Families Jobs, the REME Association's Jobs Agency (RAJA), and the White Ensign Association.

We run military insight days and attend careers events. We run a mentor network to enable early conversations to shape service leavers’ understanding of their fit with our organization. This includes reviewing CVs and preparing for interviews. We also aim to recruit more spouses and partners of Armed Forces personnel into permanent roles. 

We also work with organizations helping veterans and service leavers to transition into their second careers.

We offer a friendly pathway into a rewarding second career where you can make a tangible, sustainable impact on the world. We are proud to provide a welcoming environment where people understand your background, experiences, three-letter acronyms and unique culture. 

Our dedicated PwAF team is here to help you along this journey. 

Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of culture, with colleagues willing to pitch in to help you grow and succeed. We're increasing the diversity of our people, creating a more welcoming place to work, where everyone feels valued and free to share ideas, promoting an inclusive culture, and providing everyone with an equal voice because we know it's the right thing to do.

Hear from talented ex-armed forces team members

Many service leavers and veterans feel they lack experience in our industry. However, they already have transferable skills and an excellent foundation for our key roles thanks to considerable skills, knowledge, and qualifications, such as the Association of Project Management Professionals, PRINCE 2, Bachelors'/Masters' degrees and charterships in engineering or management. These provide an excellent foundation for our key roles – here are just some of them:

When you join us, everything you do will engineer a better future – no matter the project's scale, complexity, or location. Discover our teams below:

We collaborate in multidisciplinary teams, connecting people, digital technology and data across ten core markets: cities and development; consulting and advisory; energy; environment and geoscience; industrial and manufacturing; minerals and metallurgy; project, programme and cost management; security, aerospace and defence; transportation; and water.

Atkins welcomes and encourages employees to become reservists which provides many benefits to the individual, the Armed Forces and our business. The training and skills gained in the Reserves can be used to improve performance in the workplace and can enhance skills in areas such as leadership, teamwork, communication and decision making often in challenging situations and environments. Many of the attributes expected from individuals while they are in the Reserves can be mapped across to Atkins roles and associated core competence frameworks. 

The experience you gain as a reservist is highly relevant to your career and it can help you understand your career aspirations, support your development and your successful progression.  

We support reservists by providing an additional 10 days’ paid leave over and above normal leave. We have clear procedures for line managers and reservists to follow to enable a fruitful relationship that maximizes benefits to all; including enabling the mobilisation of reservists, which routinely takes place in the UK (e.g. Covid-19 Task Force) and overseas. We also run reservist recruitment fairs in our offices.  

Furthermore, we promote the Cadet Force Adult Volunteer Service as the benefits of volunteering are varied, from learning new skills, meeting people, taking on challenges and gaining valuable leadership experience. Atkins offers CFAVs the same additional leave benefit as reservists.   

Join our Talent Community for regular updates on our events and activities. 

Get in touch with us at armedforces@atkinsglobal.com