One of Galois’s core principles is “Seek joy at work.” While that may sound a little fuzzy, we define this principle as follows: “Work should be a source of deep satisfaction and meaning, a place where we can freely offer our skills and talents to the mutual benefit of Galois and ourselves.”
One of the biggest ways Galois fosters “joy at work” involves giving Galwegians the ability to chart their own professional destiny—flexibly steering the direction of their career based on their interests and the kinds of tasks that give them joy. Machine learning specialists have learned formal methods and changed the kind of work they do; Research Engineers have discovered a love for project management and become Project Leads; even our General Counsel started out as the front desk manager!
To be clear, this sort of career transition isn’t done on a whim. To change tacks, a Galwegian’s skills and interests have to match up with an unmet need within the company. But within those parameters, Galois builds from our “joy at work” principle to allow for a remarkable amount of self-direction when it comes to growing and evolving one’s career.
My own story is a great example of what this can look like in action. Over my 15 years at Galois, I went from a part-time consultant to senior financial analyst.
My journey looked like this:
Where I started: Independent Consultant → Part-Time Employee
Fifteen years ago, Galois hired me as an independent consultant. Within a year, their contracts department realized they needed help. I had the skill sets they needed and the desire to do the work, so I was hired on as a part-time employee.
Evolution round 1: Part-Time → Full-Time
Back then, the company was still relatively small, with about a quarter of the employees we have now. Still, there were a lot of operational hats to wear without enough heads to wear them. Since I was already working at Galois part-time, and had already built trust and relationships, it was an easy transition for me to put on a few of those hats that suited me: general office management, continued contracts support, assistance with proposals and costing efforts, and lightweight accounting support. As duties were added, I transitioned from part-time Contract Specialist to full-time Office Coordinator.
Evolution round 2: Office Coordinator → Offer Building / Proposals Operations
As the company grew, so did the needs in our offer building (the term we use for sales) group, specifically around proposals and forecasting. Since I was already working in and enjoying these tasks as a sub-set of my job, I decided to pursue Proposals Operations as my full time work. This is where I spent the bulk of my years at Galois, working alongside an amazing team of business development experts, principal scientists, and researchers, and having a blast doing it!
Evolution round 3: Offer Building / Proposals Operations → Financial Analyst
After spending a few years in the offer building arena, with the added support for engineering and finance, I’d been exposed to a wide range of overall company operations. It felt like a good time for me to make a shift, and a need was emerging in finance to have a dedicated financial analyst, which perfectly aligned with my career goals. Another win/win!
In other words, my career evolved with my interests and Galois’s needs. When I wanted to try a new and interesting career direction, I didn’t have to leave Galois to do it. I looked for opportunities where my skills and “joy at work” intersected with Galois’s needs, and—over and over again—Galois supported my changing roles to fit.
It all comes back to our core belief that personal joy and professional success are not mutually exclusive, but rather intertwined factors that contribute to a fulfilling work experience. For me, those beliefs empowered my career progression, turning “Joy at Work” from an abstract idea into a lived experience that has profoundly shaped my professional journey at Galois.