"I joined the 24/7 gas operations team with very little background knowledge about the industry. We maintain an informal but professional atmosphere, with regular social events organised."

Working a mixture of hours has its challenges, but is compensated by generous time off. I enjoy the non-routine nature of the job, no two days are the same and you are encouraged to take on responsibility at a relatively early stage.

I now lead a shift team which has given me additional responsibility. It requires a significant amount of prioritisation and multi-tasking, but the great thing is that there is always someone around to help if you are a little snowed under. I’d recommend the role to anyone who has a positive attitude, is a good team worker, and wants to work in a fast-paced and fascinating industry."

“I joined GMSL in 2011 and the gas and power industry was completely new territory for me. It was challenging at times, but the provided training and the team’s support enabled me to quickly become an efficient and knowledgeable operator. In 2016 I became a shift leader, and on top of the usual day-to day operations, I manage my own team, am involved in training, and get to meet some of our clients.

Probably one of the biggest challenges when joining is the shift work and long hours. It has its ups and downs – occasionally, I would struggle to stay awake for the last hour or two of the nightshift – but I got used to this fairly quickly and now enjoy the general flexibility of my work hours. What also makes the long hours easier is the amazing atmosphere in the office; everyone is very friendly, there is always time for tea, some cake (or as past experience taught me, a LOT of cake), and a fun conversation.

Over the years I have worked at GMSL, I have not only grown on a professional level, but also personal one; ready to take on any challenge, and do so eagerly.”

“I’m responsible for finding problems with the software before the customer gets it. This could be a problem with the design, it could be a problem with the code, it could be a problem with the database design. A developer thinks about what should happen. A tester thinks about all the things that shouldn’t!"

I write automated tests using a variety of tools, some written by other people, some by me. I only want to spend so much time button clicking through the same process every time the system gets rebuilt. If it’s going to be tested often, then I automate the procedure.

I enjoy my job at GMSL because I get to use my brains and follow my interests in IT and business. I might talk to users in the morning and code improvements to the test harness in the afternoon. It’s varied, challenging and fulfilling, making working life easier for the users. GMSL encourages me to learn new skills and I get sent on training courses with the best software testers in the world. We all get to say what we think and contribute to the development of new software.”

“Since joining GMSL I’ve worked on a handful of products, ranging from about 1,000 lines of code to about 500,000. We mainly do C# and SQL development, but there’s bits of everything from VB6 (rarely, thankfully!) to XSL to JavaScript, and some other things besides. The software we write is very specialist – some products are licenced to fewer than ten customers – which means there’s plenty of scope for thinking outside the box, and for solving problems that you can’t just Google.

It’s a great place to work – lots of talented and friendly people and a relaxed atmosphere. I guess the best endorsement I can give for working at GMSL is that I’m still here, as is more or less everybody else who was here when I joined!”