Meet Philippe, a Software Engineering Graduate

What did you study at University?

I’m Philippe and I studied maths at the University of Warwick. I first did a four-year MMATH (integrated master's degree) and then continued on with a PhD for another four years… so a lot of maths!

What activities did you undertake at University that helped you in your working life? What skills did you learn? 

I would say the thing that has helped me the most is my ability to solve problems. This is what software engineering is really about at its core and I have found that learning how to tackle challenging mathematical problems is very similar to solving software engineering problems.

What appealed to you about working at Ocado Group on the graduate programme?

When it comes to the graduate programme, I feel that Ocado values your attitude towards learning and your potential, rather than any previous technical knowledge. As someone who does not have a computer science background, this really appealed to me. Apart from this, I was simply attracted to all the cutting-edge technologies that Ocado works with. About 3 weeks into the graduate programme I was already writing code to control robotic arms!

What does your job entail?

I have been in three different teams so far, so I have experienced quite a few different types and styles of work. My current team is called “Central Reporting” and I work on the code that builds the webpages the team owns. The webpages I work on show lots of pieces of data about what is happening in Ocado’s Customer Fulfilment Centres (known as “CFCs”, an acronym you often hear at Ocado!) where grocery items are picked for customers. Some of the work might be making visual changes to the webpages and other pieces of work might focus on the logic of how we process the data.

Otherwise, more generally, most of my days consist of some independent work, some work with other people in my team, and some meetings with my team, which might consist of technical discussions, or non-technical discussions like a review of our team processes, or a group feedback session.

What has been a key achievement/stand out moment so far?

A highlight for me was visiting one of Ocado’s Customer Fulfilment Centres in Luton and seeing robotic arms pick grocery items. The robotic arms were making use of some of the algorithms that I had worked on during my first few months in my first team!

What tips would you give to a student or graduate interested in the graduate programme?

I would recommend finding out as much as possible about Ocado and the graduate programme. This will be really helpful if you decide to apply, but perhaps more importantly, it will help you decide if you think Ocado is right for you!

How supported do you feel in terms of your personal development at Ocado? (ie. do you have the resources and support you need to develop your career)

I feel incredibly well supported. This is honestly where I think the culture at Ocado and the graduate programme as a whole really shine. I started with basically no technical knowledge, and in each team I have been in, the support I have received from my managers, team members, and colleagues outside the team has been unparalleled. What I appreciate most is how everyone is so willing to give up their time to help you, regardless of whether you have been at Ocado for 10 weeks or 10 years.

How do you feel the programme is enabling you to grow professionally?

I think the amount of technical knowledge I am acquiring is huge and this is really helping me understand what software engineering is like as a career. The fact that you change team every six months means that you are constantly presented with new learning opportunities and challenges, so it never feels like your learning plateaus. Also, the number of different people that you interact and work with across teams really helps you grow on a personal level. I feel like I am a much more mature person now compared to when I joined Ocado just over a year ago.

What's one thing you now know/ like about Ocado that you didn't expect before you started?

I thought that all the software engineers at Ocado would have computer science backgrounds and that I would really be the odd one out. This is certainly not the case!