The high-tech navigation systems used in military aircraft would be grounded without the hard work of systems engineers like Florida Polytechnic University graduate Bree Mann ’18. As part of her role at Honeywell Aerospace, she works to ensure the proper performance of complex navigation systems.
“I really enjoy the hands-on testing aspect of my job and I’ve gotten to meet some amazing people,” said Mann, who works at the Honeywell offices in Clearwater, Florida. “I’ve been doing a lot of learning about GPS, INS (internal navigation systems) and the ins and outs of the details that go into navigation systems.”
Honeywell is a global leader in aerospace systems, engineering services, and commercial and consumer products.
Mann started at the Honeywell location she grew up next to shortly after receiving her bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in December 2018. She said she immediately fit right in.
“Honeywell is seriously making an effort to diversify the workplace and bring in younger people – I’m not even the youngest one there,” Mann, 22, said. “They know that me and a lot of younger people want a job that we enjoy.”
The Seminole, Florida, native said Florida Poly’s supportive faculty and campus involvement prepared her for this role in two main ways.
“The first is the extensive hands-on project experience I gained in a lot of my classes,” Mann said. “The second was the professional development skills I gained by being an active member of the Florida Poly section of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE).”
Mann was one of the founders of the campus SWE section and was president of the group when she graduated.
“We offered so many professional development skills in that organization that I wasn’t able to experience anywhere else,” Mann said.
It was at an SWE conference where Mann first connected with Honeywell. She recommends that current students do everything they can to actively participate in campus organizations that support their personal and professional interests and goals.
“Getting involved really helps improve your people skills and it helps you present yourself better and make connections with the right people,” she said.
Mann said she is thrilled to have the freedom to pursue career advancement at Honeywell and is excited about her wide-open future.
“Every single month we have one-on-ones with our manager and they like to see where you are,” she said. “The company has so many internal opportunities that what most people start at is not what they do five years later. It’s great.”
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