Acceler8 Your Future: Rebecca Adams, IT Business Analyst

Armed with a degree in computer science and business, Adams carved her path through automotive services and telecoms, building a foundation in requirements engineering and business analysis. All the while, she kept her eye on Formula 1®. “I was always looking to see if there were any jobs, and when the role at Aston Martin Aramco came up, I jumped at the first chance to apply.”

Now two years on, she still feels the thrill every day. “When I walk into this building and see the car, it still amazes me. I feel very lucky. Not a lot of people get the chance to say that.”

As an IT Business Analyst, Rebecca’s job is to connect every corner of the business, from design to production to the race team, and make sure each has what they need to work towards getting to the front of the grid. “My role is to gather requirements and make sure everybody’s got everything they need to do their jobs in the most efficient way possible.”

But for Rebecca, it’s the people who make the work meaningful. “I enjoy working with loads of different people. My favourite part is learning a little bit about each of their jobs as I go along, and working together to achieve the same goals.”

Rebecca’s story proves that ambition doesn’t end when a dream is realised; it fuels the passion to keep progress moving. In the fourth instalment of our Acceler8 Your Future series, we hear from the IT Business Analyst who loves and succeeds at connecting people, solving problems and helping her team deliver at pace.

What makes working in IT at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team different from any other tech job you’ve had or could imagine having?

I'd say that one of my favourite parts of my role is being able to understand other people's roles around the business. I'm never going to be a car designer, I'm never going to work on actually producing parts for the car. But being able to work with people to understand what they do in their day-to-day is really, really exciting.

What gets you out of bed in the morning?

I really enjoy working with lots of different people every day. But what also gets me out of bed in the morning is the fact that it's always been a dream of mine to work in Formula One™. Being able to finally do that and work for Aston Martin Aramco has really, genuinely, been a dream come true.

What’s a key skill or mindset that has helped you thrive in such a fast-paced, high-stakes environment?

I'd say key skills for working in Formula 1® would very much be adaptability. Obviously, everything happens at a very fast pace, and we’re still a relatively small IT team. We have to be able to jump into things when needed and really join together to get the job done.

At Circle8, we see coaching, training, and mentorship as key to career growth. Tell us about the importance any of these have played in helping you get here today.

I’ve definitely done formal training and professional qualifications. But in terms of mentorship, I've also been very lucky throughout my career to have had a lot of managers and colleagues who've had an impact on me.

I love my job. I love being here and getting to talk to people. And it was the encouragement of others to really point that out, to find something you love to do and really go after it. That encouragement definitely gave me that final push.

Our Total Talent Flow is about recognizing that todays perfect fit might evolve tomorrow. Have you experienced a time at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team when embracing change led to professional growth?

One of the key times I'm thinking back to was last year, when someone told me their desk hadn’t been set up correctly. I see people around the technology campus all the time, and they may often ask me a question that isn’t necessarily part of my role. But, in this case, I was able to help out, and I think that's really critical for our team, because sometimes you do have to step up.

I was also able to reflect on that later and ask, “Why did this happen in the first place?” It allowed me to better understand what we can do in the future to make sure that doesn’t happen again. So I'd say every experience that I've had has taught me something and definitely been helpful later down the line.

In fast-paced environments like F1®, HR doesn’t always get credit. But, where have you seen them make a real impact on your career or team?

It's been really critical for us to work with both HR and Circle8 in terms of making sure we've got the right people in our team. As I say, we are still growing, so recruitment is really critical for us to make sure that we have the right people in the room and are the voice of the rest of our team in every situation.

Can you share an example of how teamwork has helped overcome a challenge within your IT role at Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team?

We're very much dictated by the race calendar. We don't have the opportunity to move a Grand Prix because something's not quite ready. We have to work towards those deadlines. There's also the added challenge that a significant proportion of our user base is travelling and working across different time zones. So it’s very unique, and I don't think we could deliver half of the stuff we do as an IT team without that collaboration and the teamwork that we have.

We are generally a very close-knit IT team, and we're still growing, so we do all jump in and help out. And there are people here that I've learned from, certainly, who've been in the industry or been in Formula 1® a lot longer than I have, and there are things that I'm still learning on a day-to-day basis from them.

What advice would you give to aspiring IT professionals looking to work for a high-performance team like Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ and a sport like F1®?

I’d say to anyone looking to start a career in Formula 1®, it's important to be inquisitive and be open-minded. We have got some ways of working that are set in stone and some not so much. Be open to the use of new technologies, be inquisitive about what the different options are, and be able to challenge things.