Engaging with the wider professional community can help individuals and organisations grow their skills, knowledge, capabilities and industry influence.
Find out more about the Nuclear Professionalism Standard®
Networking plays a key part in developing personal professionalism and the learnings and insight it offers – from peers or from more experienced colleagues – often directly, or indirectly, affects an individual’s career progression.
In the Nuclear Institute, the Young Generation Network (YGN) and the University Network provide introductory opportunities, while a network of local Branches and Special Interest Groups (SIGs) offer a variety of ways to build professionalism throughout the career stages.
Sophie Cooper, of UK NNL, explains: “Sometimes, when you’re working in a company, it’s all too easy to just have internal conversations and not really reflect on wider industry challenges or engage with other people who are working on similar problems.
The YGN is a great way to start getting involved, then the Branches and SIGs help you to see what's going on beyond your little bubble. Branches are all about friends getting together, chatting about the industry while SIGs feel like that next step to be a bit more in depth.”
Conferences and educational courses are often the go-to option for companies seeking to help their employees grow their professional insight, but while they offer many benefits, the group networks that member organisations like the NI offer go far deeper.
“At a conference, although you might start to see the same faces and get to know each other, there is less familiarisation so the conversations are quite formal,” adds Cooper, who is a member of the NI’s North West Branch and the NI-supported NAILS organisation.
“Being involved in groups gives you a more connected, longer-term perspective on professionalism because you're meeting more regularly, organising events or doing activities together, so you become closer friends and you can have those deeper conversations.”
Building professionalism
The YGN has long been the go-to starting point for young nuclear career professionals seeking to learn beyond their new roles within the industry. Its alumni list of committee members and Chairs shows how influential it has been in developing future sector leaders.
The network provides huge opportunities for career development and learning, with events including its popular ‘Intro to…’ series, the well-attended local and national speaking competitions and countless events that offer opportunities to meet future employers.
The regional NI Branches provide access to local nuclear communities all around the country, bringing together professional people from all areas. Events can range from insightful webinars or in-person talks to simple get-togethers down the pub – and every one helps to build a valuable professional network.
Taking the step to get involved in committee leadership is a commitment many find hard to do in addition to their everyday role, but the value of these volunteer positions is given back through professional growth and exposure to skills not accessible through the day job.
SIGs, meanwhile, extend professional development in a different way as they focus on specific technical or non-technical subject areas, bringing experts of all ages and grades together to support the development of the industry.
Through regular discussions and communications, the members of these groups can grow into professional experts, gaining status within the industry as they help set industry trends, suggest new approaches and provide expertise beyond the industry.
Anyone can join a SIG providing they have specific contributions of value to the development of the topic area and each one helps to advance knowledge sharing, develop good practice and deliver suggestions for practical industrial application.
Growing the network
The next generation of nuclear will require a major uplift in skilled workers and the recently-reinvigorated NI University Network will play an important part in raising the awareness and professionalism of nuclear within the UK’s academic institutions, while also encouraging engagement between academia and industry.
Cooper was instrumental in developing this as part of her role within the North West Branch and she explains: “We wanted students to find out more about what's going on at the NI because there's so many great things, but very few students know about all that.
“Finding out what's happening at a research level at different universities has also been really useful and for the PhD students involved, it's really opened their eyes to what goes on in the industry beyond their academic research.”
Along with the UK-focus, international partnerships – such as the NI’s membership of the European Nuclear Society (ENS) and partnerships with Nuclear Societies in America, India, Canada and Australia – are giving UK professionalism a wider audience.
These connections allow members to expand their professional networks through events and activities, while the collaboration with the Institute of Physics (IOP) in the UK also encourages shared professionalism across industries.
Ultimately, Branches, Groups and Networks provide a unique depth to professional development, helping to turn members into well-rounded professionals and shaping the development of nuclear-related educational activities all around the country.