CEng Success; coming full circle
Stephen Magora currently works as a managing director at Credit Suisse where his day-to-day tasks include managing teams in three different time zones and tackling unexpected issues. It’s a tall task but one that Stephen is well prepared for after his experience in multiple different industries and his secret weapon; a lifelong passion for science and technology.
Inspiration to Innovation
For the real story of Stephen’s path into STEM you need to go back to his childhood in Southern Africa when a young boy turned on the TV and became inspired by what he saw.
“One day I watched a TV discussion and one of the participants was a Chartered Engineer (CEng). The other participants kept referring to him as “Engineer” and gave him so much respect. It was at that point that I decided to become a CEng one day.”
It was this experience alongside his fascination with solving problems and a desire to make a difference that kickstarted his STEM journey.
Stephen’s career began when he trained as a Computer Engineer and spent his early years writing code and administering systems for larger organisations. However, this was just the start of a journey that would take him from a trainee to a top talent.
“After my training I moved into management consulting and focused more helping companies to define and implement technology strategies that gave them a competitive advantage. This is the stage of my career where I developed my passion for working with business to solve problems.”
Over the last 15 years Stephen has moved into data science within the financial services sector, continuing his strong belief that technology and data will transform our lives inside and outside of work in the near future.
Fulfilling a lifelong ambition
As part of his professional objectives for 2022 Stephen started work on his CEng application and started taking steps towards his childhood ambition of being a recognised and valued engineer.
After starting to fill in the application form online, Stephen was allocated a mentor via the IET with whom he could “get guidance and build a professional relationship” in order to benefit his application and increase the chances of success.
“I hugely benefitted from the support provided by Lucy Byrne and PREM team. The support spanned from providing a mentor to answering all my stupid questions and guiding me through the entire process. It was comforting to know that there was always someone at the end of the telephone if I needed help. I couldn’t have done it without their support.”
After a challenging but rewarding application and assessment process in which Stephen dedicated a significant amount of time and effort, he was successfully awarded CEng in November 2022.
Looking back on success
Despite achieving one of his biggest goals Stephen was able to reflect on the process and take a look at what is required to become a CEng and how much work he personally put into the process.
“Professional Registration requires a significant amount of preparation, including gathering evidence of competency, completing a self-assessment, and preparing for the professional review interview. Nevertheless, if you successfully achieve chartered engineer status, the experience is highly rewarding and provides a sense of professional accomplishment and recognition.”
Being more recognised was one of the primary motivations behind Stephen’s quest for CEng and it is something that he already feeling the benefits from as he is now “recognised more than before which helps me stand out in a competitive job market and gain respect from colleagues, clients, and stakeholders.”
However, Stephen didn’t bask in the glory for too long as he was recommended to apply for IET Fellowship which he did successfully as well begin a volunteering journey with the IET, taking part in pre-interview assessment panels for professional registration applications.
Now Stephen has set new professional goals which include becoming a senior leader in his organisation and using those skills to mentor and develop younger engineers.
“I am starting to work with young people at stages before they choose university courses and hopefully, I can influence some to pursue a career in engineering and technology.”
It seems as though Stephen’s journey in engineering is starting to come full circle as he aims to inspire the next generation of the STEM professionals in the same way that engineer on South African TV inspired him.