Industrial Placement - R&D Strategy, Processes & AI

Salary: £25,500

Start Date: Monday 16th August 2027 – Friday 4th August 2028

Location: Based in Crewe, Cheshire, CW1 3PL
.

Work Arrangement: Hybrid working

Entry Requirements: See ‘What we’re looking for’ section

As part of Bentley’s annual Early Careers intake, you’ll join a community of around 93 trainees including Industrial Placements, Graduates, and Apprentices.

During your placement, you’ll be based at our Bentley Campus "Dream Factory".  to visit our virtual tour.

Alongside hands‑on work experience, you’ll also benefit from:

• CSR and outreach activities
• Opportunities to participate in charity events, community projects, and social committees
• Masterclasses, development workshops, and social events
• Inclusivity networks and peer support groups
• Placements and rotations across different areas of the business that interest you

As an Industrial Placement Student at Bentley, you will play a key part in Bentley’s journey to create extraordinary vehicles for our customers. Based out of our state‑of‑the‑art headquarters in Crewe, you will:

• Gain hands‑on experience across three connected areas at the centre of Bentley R&D: strategy, engineering processes, and digitalisation, automation and AI,
• See first‑hand how strategic decisions are prepared, made and turned into action, working alongside senior R&D leaders,
• Be mentored by experienced colleagues and take real ownership of your own projects, building skills that are increasingly central to how modern vehicles are developed.

• R&D Strategy: supporting the definition, delivery, tracking and communication of strategic and operational initiatives, and helping to prepare strategy events,
• R&D Processes: supporting the optimisation of cross‑R&D processes and helping to ensure they work effectively,
• Digitalisation, Automation & AI: supporting the R&D AI portfolio from idea to delivery, and building practical solutions, such as bespoke tools, Copilot agents, Power Automate flows and Power BI dashboards, to improve efficiency.

R&D Strategy & Process (EZ/S) sits within R&D Strategy & Operations and acts as a central team for the whole of Bentley R&D. The team defines and drives the R&D strategy, has responsibility for cross‑R&D engineering processes, and leads R&D’s approach to digitalisation, data and AI, working closely with the R&D Directors, VW Group colleagues and IT.

The successful candidates will be on track to achieve a 2:1 in the following degrees:
Engineering (including Mechanical, Automotive, Electrical/Electronic or Systems Engineering), Computer Science, Data Science, Mathematics, Physics, or Business/Engineering Management.

• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills, with a structured approach to work
• Experience of coding (e.g. Python) or low‑code tools such as Power BI and Power Automate
• A genuine interest in AI, automation and new digital tools, and how they can improve the way people work
• Clear written and verbal communication, with the confidence to work with senior colleagues
• Organised, self‑motivated and curious.

• A starting salary of £25,500
• Support from our Early Careers team and 121 manager mentorship
• 35 days’ holiday inclusive of bank holidays
• 10% pension contribution with life assurance benefits
• Learning and development opportunities

To be eligible for an Early Careers programme you must have a legal right to work in the UK for the duration of the placement or graduate scheme. We welcome students who have Settled Status, a Tier 4 Visa, or a Graduate Visa. We are unable to offer sponsorship for our Early Careers positions.

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