Neil Murphy (Settlements & Systems)

I have been with SSE for 12 years and spent the entirety of this period in the Settlements team within EPM. My career journey has been far from conventional. In my early twenties I worked as a fully qualified Gas Technical heating engineer for British Gas. At the time it felt as though my career was mapped out.  However, it didn’t take long to realise that this was not ‘my dream’ and was not the fulfilling career that I was hoping it would be. I stayed in this role for 4 years growing more and more unhappy. This is when I decided that I wanted to leave the small town that I was born & raised and study something that I have always been interested in at university. In 2006 I began my Environmental Science degree in the city of Bath and have never looked back. I graduated in 2009 with a degree, the best 3 years of my life behind me, a new outlook on life and most significantly my future wife.

I joined SSE as a temporary member of staff following graduating from University. I initially joined as I needed a job and saw this opportunity as a stepping-stone. I soon discovered that SSE offered many exciting opportunities within the GB & Irish Energy markets and this was a good opportunity to build a new career. Once taken on permanently 6 months later I felt that I was well placed. My technical experience in the Gas industry and passion for better environmental practices appeared to be echoed in SSEs strategy. As well as this, the most striking thing that I noticed when I joined Settlements was how close the team was and I soon felt part of the SSE family. This was something in the workplace that I have never previously felt. This has helped me to grow personally and professionally. I have had the opportunity to work in several different areas and develop my knowledge and my skills in the process. 

I have always enjoyed analytical work and challenging myself & there is no shortage of that in EPM. Things are always changing and if you are willing to get stuck in, there is always something interesting to get involved in.

SSE has always offered great benefits in my opinion, and I feel that I have probably only scratched the surface. They reward loyalty with a very competitive pension scheme, where employer contributions increase over time with the company. I have also benefitted from mobile phone discount, free eye tests, holiday plus, childcare vouchers and cycle to work schemes. The list goes on...

However, the most significant things that I can honestly say make me proud to work for SSE are:

• Flexible approach to work. I currently do a condensed 37 hour week over 4 days, which allows me to have a ‘daddy day’ every Thursday. This flexibility has been priceless to my family and given me so many happy days with my children. Prior to lockdown, I was also able to work from home 1 day per week. This has now been increased to 2. The days where I am required to work in the office, I can fit it around the school run. This flexibility has been crucial to ensuring work – life balance.
• SSE Net Zero journey – I have always been passionate about our environment and seeing SSE Net zero targets and involvement in COP 26 made me proud. I work for a company with the same ambitions as myself and that excites me & makes it easy for me to have faith in our strategy. It excites me to think of the projects that I will have the opportunity to be a part of in the future.