My Journey to Hitachi – Dawn Brooks

For the third of our My Journey to Hitachi series – where we take a look at the many different career stories to be found throughout Hitachi – we talk to Dawn Brooks, Executive Officer (Environment Business) at Hitachi High-Tech and Managing Director at Hitachi High-Tech Analytical Science.?

From the most unusual job she’s ever had, to her environmental aims and how she champions diversity and inclusion within the sciences, technology and engineering, we found out more about what drives Dawn in her own career at Hitachi.??

What’s the most unusual job you’ve ever had???

When I was 19 years old and at university, I used to work at a KP Crisps factory in the holidays. I used to work a night shift, and my role involved packing 24 packets of crisps into each cardboard box on the production line – you had to make sure you packed fast enough to keep up with the conveyor belt!???

What’s something you’ve always wanted to try but haven’t yet???

That’s a difficult one; I think it’d have to be something like writing a book. Not just one book though, I’d set myself a challenge and write a whole science fiction series with at least 10 books – think Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time.????

What did your work as a Management Board advocate for Diversity & Inclusion entail and what does it mean to you???

My aim is to try to encourage cross cultural and gender diversity within STEM organisations and to show that you can still have a good work-life balance between career and family.?

When I left university, I was told I only had two choices, to go into teaching or to do a PhD. However, once I started working, I realised that there were so many more avenues to go down.??

As part of my work, I’ve participated in events including the Understanding Industry programme for A Level students studying economics and business studies, as well as the Women in Science initiative at Oxford University, for those who are the first generation in their family to go to university.??

Both have been very rewarding opportunities for me, as I’ve had the chance to share my own experiences and explain how women can have a good career within science if that’s what they choose – as there are now so many options available to them.??

Which element of your job do you enjoy most???

One of the parts of the job I really love is meeting our customers. Doing this helps me gain a better understanding of their issues and with what I’ve learnt I can help in creating the strategic direction for Hitachi High-Tech Analytical Science, as well as a roadmap for the next three to five years within the company.??

What are your hopes for the future of Hitachi???

Bearing in mind my mission as Executive Officer for the environment, I have a vested interest in Hitachi's Social Innovation Business and I’m keen to see us reach our environment goals. One area that we can progress is the creation of an end-to-end solution within environment dedicated to the circular economy. Hitachi High-Tech Analytical Science’s observation, measurement and analysis (OMA) devices, while a small part of our company’s overall capability, would play a key part of this solution by providing real time data during the manufacturing and recycling process.?

What’s a change you would make to improve the environment or combat climate change???

Small actions can have a big impact when taken by multiple people. There are of course large-scale and fundamental changes I would like to see, such as the transition to renewable power for example, but on the smaller scale I’d like to see each of us attempt to make changes to our behavior. It could be something like dedicating a small proportion of the outdoor space available to us to nature, by planting a few wildflowers or even easier than that, starting to compost.??