As part of our early careers engagements and diversity initiatives across the U.K., we attended several fairs, including Imperial College London, AGCAS Scottish Graduate Fair, London Southbank and Brunel’s engineering careers events. Across all engineering disciplines, we have found an increased interest in the areas of commissioning, mechanical, power, electrical, public health, sustainability and resiliency, structural and civil engineering.
In 2026, we hosted a careers stand at the St Richard Reynolds Catholic College in Twickenham. This was an opportunity for students to ask questions about the industry and to encourage education in the built environment, giving them more choices in career options.
In 2025, 11 graduates and apprentices were hired for the Careers Plus early Careers programme: 70% of this intake was female in the electrical, power, marketing, sustainability and resilience, commissioning engineering, and public health disciplines; and 100% of the intake for apprenticeships is female. The public health engineering student will undertake a degree apprenticeship at London South Bank University while studying. The duration of the apprenticeships in building services is approximately. 4.5 years plus the End Point Assessment, and we hope to keep all apprentices following their graduation on as permanent employees who progress through the business. In 2025, 80% of the graduates who joined the commissioning, public health, marketing and electrical TMT teams are female.
As well as this external public-facing support, HDR has a number of employee network groups (ENGs), one being the Women’s group. This group actively promotes connection, support, and engagement.
The Institute for Engineering & Technology (IET) also looks to promote and support the engineering and technology field by encouraging their corporate partners to engage with the IET open house every summer. This event is aimed at 5- to 13-year-olds and their guardians/parents to think about STEM topics for the future. In 2026, the Women’s Employee Network Group will host a Running an Engineering Open House.
As part of our ongoing support and community engagement, HDR is partnering with Newham College to hire a T-level student joining us in the first quarter of 2026 within the commissioning management team. This student will be working with us alongside their studies, which will then lead to an apprenticeship. T-levels allow students a flexible 45-day placement with an employer to gain exposure to technical knowledge, digital skills, and professional experience in the building services and built environment sectors: Level 3 T-Level in Design, Surveying and Planning for Construction – Newham College.
Once in the business, various options support the ongoing training and development of our employees. The annual appraisal process allows employees to access various soft skills trainings, such as project management, technical report writing, or presentation skills, as well as technical skills required for their discipline. Furthermore, the Career Connect programme, launched internally in 2022, is self-paced, customisable, and, most significantly, accessible to any employee looking to develop leadership skills. It is designed to be flexible, allowing anyone to start, stop, or pause as needed. Those who complete this programme in its entirety will not only have demonstrated a keen knowledge of HDR's business but also the self-management, interpersonal skills, and focus necessary for the next generation of HDR leaders. Another arm of this framework includes the mentoring programme, which provides valuable personal and career development opportunities through facilitated mentorship pairings and events. Started by the Women’s ENG, participation in the Mentorship Programme is a great opportunity to gain professional support, share experiences, extend the employees' network, and cultivate meaningful relationships with strong, inspirational role models within HDR.
In addition, as part of the training and development offerings, HDR has a host of internal supervisory resources that are actively promoted to all staff. Topics include trainings and webinars for technical report writing, active listening, the multigenerational workforce, supervisor essentials, coaching, and unconscious bias. In 2025, the business also launched a professional registration, Chartership, and Certification support scheme, which allows the business to sponsor all employees onto the professional registration route if they so wish. This means all required fees will be reimbursed, and a spot bonus will be paid upon completion of this process. This is available to all employees globally, regardless of the department they work in. HDR prides itself on its technical ability and relies on credentials such as these from its professionals to maintain its competitive edge.
