Profile
Gareth Hartwell
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About Me:
I live with my wife near Leatherhead in Surrey close to where I work at the CGI office. I have a 19 year old son who is now at University. As well as my interests in Maths, Physics and AI I also like walking and running in the nearby countryside.
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My pronouns are:
he/him
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My Work:
I am an IT Programme Manager working in the areas of IT and satellite communications. I started as a software developer a long time ago. I’m also very interested in AI and Machine Learning – both as a hobby and at work.
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My Typical Day:
I work in the office a couple of days a week which is a short drive from home. (I should really cycle but have only managed to do this a few times because I am usually too lazy!) Sometimes I work from home. On office days I work with a multi-disciplined team of about ten people – from software engineers, hardware experts and testers through to AI, safety and security specialists. At home we use Teams to keep in touch. I am now the Programme Manager so it’s mainly my team who do the technical work but I still like to keep involved and keep up to date with the latest developments.
Several days a month I go out to meet customers and suppliers and frequently attend conferences, for example I recently went to London to meet train companies around the world who are interested in our satellite communications solution and to the European Space Agency Technical Centre in Noordwijk to discuss the Machine Learning work we have been doing on one of my projects.
There isn’t really a typical day, it is very varied.
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What I'd do with the prize money:
We support STEM engagement with a local secondary school where some children do not have good opportunities or positive STEM role models at home. The prize money would help us to build on this work and do more to encourage students from all sorts of backgrounds to pursue STEM careers.
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Education:
John Hanson School, Andover (state secondary school up to 16)
Cricklade College, Andover (tertiary college)
Van Mildert College, Durham University
King’s College London
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Qualifications:
10 O levels
4 A levels (Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Computer Science)
1st class honours degree in Mathematics from Durham University (BSc)
PhD in Theoretical Physics from King’s College London
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Work History:
Graduate student / 1st year tutor
Maths teacher
Politician (stood unsuccessfully to be an MP in 1997 and 2001)
Software engineer
IT Technical Lead
Project Manager
Programme Manager
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Current Job:
Director Consulting Services (which basically means an IT Programme Manager) – I lead a team of 14 people with two main projects using IT (including AI) and satellite communications on railway and aviation projects.
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Employer:
CGI IT UK Limited. We are a large IT consultancy and systems integrator employing about 90,000 people mainly in Europe and North America.
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My Interview
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My favourite CHRISTMAS LECTURES memory is:
The robot orchestra in 2014
How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
mathematician-turned-computerscientist
What did you want to be after you left school?
Astronaut
Were you ever in trouble at school?
Not at school but I hosted a party at my Mum's house during my A-levels which got completely out of hand!
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
National park ranger
Who is your favourite singer or band?
Queen (they were at King's a few years before me)
What's your favourite food?
Chilli con carne
If you had 3 wishes for yourself what would they be? - be honest!
1. To have the confidence to take more risks with my life e.g. to move and work abroad. 2. To be thinner and fitter! 3. To be more patient even when stressed
Tell us a joke.
Did you hear about the mathematician who is afraid of negative numbers? He will stop at nothing to avoid them!
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My Comments
Are there any ethical dilemmas involving the use of AI in this field, and if so what are they? (1 comments)
do you like any sports (1 comments)