How to Apply to Leonardo

11 min read Last updated April 20, 2026 67 open positions
Blake Crosley
Blake Crosley Researched using publicly available information, hiring data, and ATS analysis.

Key Takeaways

  • Leonardo S.p.A. is a state-anchored Italian aerospace and defense prime with more than 60,000 employees, roughly 17,000 in R&D, operating across approximately 150 countries with major industrial bases in Italy, the UK, the US, and Poland.
  • All applications go through Workday at leonardocompany.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/LeonardoCareerSite; there is no separate ATS or back-channel, and the platform typically advertises 1,000-67+ open roles at any time.
  • Tailor every CV to the specific requisition, mirror the posting's terminology and platform names, and submit a clean ATS-friendly PDF; Workday does literal keyword parsing that punishes generic resumes.
  • Make security-clearance status, citizenship eligibility, and language proficiency explicit on the CV; defense roles screen these fields before any technical evaluation.
  • The selection process is typically a recruiter screen, a technical interview with the hiring manager, and a final round with HR and senior technical leadership; total cycle is 4-10 weeks, longer when clearance vetting is in scope.
  • Leonardo expects evidence-backed, concrete answers in interviews, rewards active listening and professional questions, and values cultural fit with its innovation, integrity, sustainability, and teamwork values.
  • Strategic growth areas include artificial intelligence, quantum and high-performance computing, cyber security, space and Earth observation, GCAP sixth-generation fighter, electrification of aviation, and advanced materials; align your pitch to one of these.
  • Early-career pathways are well-developed: graduate programmes (Leonardo International Talent Programme, HR Graduate Programme, Sustainability Excellence Programme), curricular and extracurricular internships, and university partnerships such as Girls@Polimi.
  • Patience and professionalism convert offers; Leonardo's hierarchical, partner-driven decision culture and union-governed Italian employment framework run on longer timelines than commercial tech employers.

About Leonardo

Leonardo S.p.A. is one of the world's largest aerospace, defense, and security companies, headquartered in Piazza Monte Grappa, Rome, Italy. Originally founded as Finmeccanica in 1948 and rebranded to Leonardo in 2017 to honor Leonardo da Vinci's legacy of multidisciplinary innovation, the group is majority-owned by the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance and listed on the Borsa Italiana (FTSE-MIB: LDO). With more than 60,000 employees across roughly 150 countries, Leonardo operates a uniquely transnational footprint anchored by major industrial bases in Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Poland, as well as joint ventures in France (Thales Alenia Space, Telespazio), Germany (MBDA), and beyond. The company organizes its work into core domains that include Helicopters (the former AgustaWestland heritage, with sites at Yeovil in the UK and Vergiate, Cascina Costa, and Pomigliano d'Arco in Italy), Defense Electronics & Security (radars, electronic warfare, avionics, secure communications, and cyber), Aircraft (Eurofighter Typhoon partnership, M-346 trainer, ATR turboprops via the joint venture with Airbus, and the C-27J Spartan), and Space (satellite manufacturing, launch services, and Earth observation through Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio). Leonardo is a founding industrial pillar of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), the trilateral sixth-generation fighter program with the United Kingdom and Japan, and a major contributor to European defense initiatives such as MBDA, the Eurofighter consortium, and the EuroMALE drone program. The company invests heavily in research and development with approximately 17,000 people working in R&D and engineering, and 61.5% of the global workforce holding STEM qualifications. Strategic technology priorities include artificial intelligence and autonomous systems, quantum technologies (the company runs an HPC supercomputer named davinci-1), cyber security and resilience, digital twin manufacturing, advanced materials, and electrification of aerospace platforms. Leonardo holds gender equality certification UNI/PdR 125:2022, ranks consistently among Universum's most attractive STEM employers in Italy, and has been recognized for diversity and inclusion by Fortune Italia and as an Investors in People organization in the United Kingdom. For job seekers, Leonardo combines the scale and security clearance pathways of a state-anchored prime contractor with the technical depth of a research-driven engineering firm.

Application Process

  1. 1
    Search and apply through the official Leonardo Workday career site at leonardoco

    Search and apply through the official Leonardo Workday career site at leonardocompany.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/LeonardoCareerSite, which lists all global vacancies (typically 1,000-67+ open roles spanning Italy, the UK, the US, Poland, and other markets) and is the only authoritative application channel for the group.

  2. 2
    Create a Workday candidate profile: upload an updated CV in PDF, complete the pe

    Create a Workday candidate profile: upload an updated CV in PDF, complete the personal data and education sections, and add work history; you can also use 'Introduce Yourself' to register a speculative profile when no advertised role matches your background, and recruiters will contact you when relevant openings appear.

  3. 3
    Submit a tailored application for each specific requisition (Workday req IDs fol

    Submit a tailored application for each specific requisition (Workday req IDs follow the format R00XXXXX). Avoid mass-applying with one generic CV; Leonardo's recruiters and hiring managers explicitly evaluate how closely your skills and projects map to the posted job description.

  4. 4
    Initial screening is conducted by Leonardo's central Talent Acquisition team, wh

    Initial screening is conducted by Leonardo's central Talent Acquisition team, who review your CV against role requirements and may invite you to a phone or video screening to confirm motivation, mobility, language skills (Italian and English are commonly required for Italian roles), and clearance eligibility for defense-sensitive positions.

  5. 5
    Technical assessment follows for engineering, cyber, and software roles, often i

    Technical assessment follows for engineering, cyber, and software roles, often including a structured technical interview with the hiring manager, occasionally a written test or case study, and for early-career candidates participation in assessment-center days or graduate-program campaigns such as the Leonardo International Talent Programme or HR Graduate Programme.

  6. 6
    Final-stage interviews typically include the hiring manager and an HR business p

    Final-stage interviews typically include the hiring manager and an HR business partner, focused on behavioral questions, fit with Leonardo values (innovation, integrity, sustainability, and teamwork), willingness to relocate or travel between sites, and detailed discussion of career path; for security-cleared roles, expect a separate vetting process (NOS in Italy, BPSS/SC/DV in the UK, Secret/Top Secret in the US) that can extend the timeline by several weeks or months.

  7. 7
    On offer acceptance, onboarding includes the formal contract (CCNL Metalmeccanic

    On offer acceptance, onboarding includes the formal contract (CCNL Metalmeccanici Industria for Italian sites), background and clearance verification, and an induction program; new hires often join structured early-career tracks where 42.5% hold a STEM degree, 50.5% are under 30, and 24% are women.

Resume Tips for Leonardo

recommended

Lead with quantified engineering impact relevant to Leonardo's domains: programs

Lead with quantified engineering impact relevant to Leonardo's domains: programs delivered, systems integrated, flight hours supported, lines of safety-critical code, radar or sensor performance metrics, certification milestones (DO-178C, DO-254, AS9100, CMMI), or cybersecurity incidents resolved. Vague responsibility statements get filtered out fast in Workday keyword screens.

recommended

Mirror the exact terminology from the job posting, including specific platform n

Mirror the exact terminology from the job posting, including specific platform names (AW139, AW169, EH101, Eurofighter Typhoon, M-346, C-27J, ATR 72, NH90), domain acronyms (EW, ISR, C5ISR, SATCOM, MILSATCOM, HPC), and tool stacks (MATLAB/Simulink, DOORS, Cameo, Ansys, CATIA, Siemens NX, Polarion). Workday parses literal keyword matches.

recommended

Make security-clearance status explicit

Make security-clearance status explicit. State current clearance level and country (e.g., 'NOS Segreto - Italy', 'SC cleared - UK MOD', 'US Secret active'), the granting authority, and expiry. For uncleared candidates eligible to obtain clearance, write 'Eligible for SC/NATO Secret clearance (UK/EU/dual national)' to clear the recruiter screen.

recommended

Include language proficiency at CEFR levels for both Italian and English at mini

Include language proficiency at CEFR levels for both Italian and English at minimum (e.g., 'Italian C2 native, English C1, French B2'). Most Italian Leonardo sites operate bilingually with international partners and will reject monolingual candidates for roles requiring partner coordination.

recommended

Highlight aerospace and defense regulatory exposure: ITAR, EAR, EU Dual-Use Regu

Highlight aerospace and defense regulatory exposure: ITAR, EAR, EU Dual-Use Regulation 2021/821, MOD JSP 440, NATO STANAGs, EASA Part 21/145/M, FAA Part 25, and military airworthiness frameworks (EMAR, MAA RA). These are non-obvious filters used by hiring managers in compliance-heavy programs.

recommended

For software, AI, and cyber roles, list concrete frameworks rather than buzzword

For software, AI, and cyber roles, list concrete frameworks rather than buzzwords (PyTorch, TensorFlow, Kubernetes on classified networks, CISSP/OSCP/CEH certifications, MITRE ATT&CK, NIST 800-53, ISO 27001, IEC 62443 for industrial control systems). Generic 'machine learning' without specifics underperforms.

recommended

Format the CV as a clean ATS-friendly PDF with single column, standard fonts (Ar

Format the CV as a clean ATS-friendly PDF with single column, standard fonts (Arial, Calibri, Helvetica 10-12pt), and clear section headers. Avoid headers/footers, text boxes, tables for layout, embedded images, and graphics-only icons; Leonardo's Workday parser strips these and may lose your contact details or work history.

recommended

If you are a graduate or early-career applicant, foreground your degree (institu

If you are a graduate or early-career applicant, foreground your degree (institution, GPA on Italian 110 or UK Honours scale, thesis topic), STEM relevance, technical projects, internships at aerospace primes or research institutions (CNR, INFN, DLR, ESA, Fraunhofer), and any participation in Leonardo programs such as Mission Future, Solvers Wanted, or Springboard.

ATS System: Workday

Leonardo S.p.A. uses Workday Recruiting (tenant: leonardocompany, instance: wd3) as its global applicant tracking system. The career site at leonardocompany.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/LeonardoCareerSite is the single authoritative entry point for all advertised roles across Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, Poland, and other markets, typically displaying 1,000-1,500 open requisitions with IDs in the format R00XXXXX. Workday parses uploaded CVs into structured candidate profiles and applies literal keyword matching during recruiter searches and screening filters, so the wording of your CV directly affects how often you surface in shortlists. The platform supports speculative applications via 'Introduce Yourself', job alerts, and saved searches, and it is the back-end of record even when you discover a Leonardo job through LinkedIn or another aggregator.

  • Always submit your application directly through leonardocompany.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com rather than relying on a LinkedIn Easy Apply or third-party redirect, so that your full Workday candidate profile is created and recruiters can find you in subsequent searches.
  • Upload your CV as a clean single-column PDF, since Workday's parser handles plain layouts well but routinely garbles multi-column designs, text boxes, headers, footers, and graphics-heavy templates, occasionally losing contact details or misplacing work history entries.
  • Mirror the exact terminology, platform names, certifications, and acronyms from the job posting in both your CV and the Workday application form fields; the system performs literal string matching, so 'Eurofighter Typhoon' beats a generic 'fighter aircraft program' reference.
  • Complete every section of the Workday profile, especially the Work History, Education, Languages (with proficiency levels), Skills, and Certifications fields, because recruiters filter on these structured attributes rather than only the attached CV.
  • Use the 'Introduce Yourself' speculative application when no live requisition matches your profile so that Leonardo's Talent Acquisition team can find you when relevant openings appear, and configure Workday job alerts for your skill area and preferred countries to receive notifications the moment matching roles post.
  • Apply early in the requisition lifecycle (within the first 7-14 days of posting) because Leonardo's high-volume reqs accumulate hundreds of applications quickly and recruiters frequently shortlist from the first wave before the posting closes.

Complete Workday Resume Guide →

Interview Culture

Interviews at Leonardo blend rigorous technical depth with the collegial, somewhat formal style of a heritage European industrial group.

Most processes begin with a 30-45 minute screening by a Talent Acquisition recruiter who confirms availability, salary expectations, language proficiency, mobility (Leonardo expects willingness to travel between Italian sites or to international partners such as BAE Systems, MBDA, Boeing, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries), and eligibility for the security clearance attached to the role. Recruiters are typically based in Rome, Genoa, or the relevant national headquarters and often conduct screenings bilingually in Italian and English. The technical stage is the centerpiece and varies sharply by domain. Engineering candidates can expect detailed discussion of past projects with whiteboard or shared-screen problem solving on signal processing, control systems, RF design, mechanical analysis, or software architecture; cyber and software candidates may face hands-on exercises covering threat modeling, secure coding review, network forensics, or system design. Hiring managers reward specific, evidence-backed answers and politely probe vague claims. Leonardo's culture is hierarchical but not aggressive, so interviewers expect candidates to demonstrate respect, listen carefully, and reference concrete deliverables rather than self-promote. The company's official tips emphasize active listening, complete answers with concrete examples, sharing professional expectations openly, and asking questions of the panel. Behavioral questions explore alignment with Leonardo's stated values of innovation, integrity, sustainability, customer focus, and teamwork, and often probe how you have navigated long-cycle programs, multi-stakeholder consortia, or classified environments where information sharing is constrained. For roles touching defense programs, expect questions about ethical frameworks, export-control awareness, and willingness to operate within national security obligations. Final interviews usually involve the hiring manager plus an HR business partner, sometimes joined by a senior technical authority for principal or lead roles, and frequently include site-specific visits to Vergiate, Cascina Costa, Yeovil, Edinburgh, Basildon, Luton, Pomigliano, La Spezia, or Rome Tiburtina once travel is feasible. Decisions tend to take longer than at commercial tech firms (4-10 weeks is common, longer when clearance is in scope) because of internal approvals, union consultation for Italian permanent contracts under CCNL Metalmeccanici, and clearance vetting cycles. Candidates who keep in calm, professional contact with their recruiter, send a concise thank-you note, and remain patient through the back-end paperwork tend to convert offers more reliably than those who push aggressively for rapid decisions.

What Leonardo Looks For

  • Strong STEM foundation, ideally an engineering or computer science degree from a recognized European or international university; 61.5% of Leonardo's workforce holds a STEM qualification and 42.5% of new hires arrive with a STEM degree, so non-STEM candidates need exceptional domain experience to compete for technical roles.
  • Demonstrated experience or clear potential in Leonardo's strategic technology areas: artificial intelligence and autonomous intelligent systems, cyber security and resilience, space technologies, digital twin and digital thread, advanced materials and structures, electrification, big data analytics, and high-performance and cloud computing.
  • Eligibility for or current possession of national security clearance in the relevant jurisdiction (Italian NOS, UK SC/DV, US Secret/TS, or Polish equivalents); a substantial share of Leonardo's roles touch classified programs and unclear citizenship or clearance status will block progression regardless of technical strength.
  • Bilingual or multilingual capability, with English required across virtually all roles and Italian strongly preferred for Italy-based positions; international programs such as GCAP, Eurofighter, MBDA, and Thales Alenia Space additionally value French, German, Japanese, or Polish.
  • Program-management mindset suited to multi-year, multi-stakeholder defense and aerospace contracts: comfort with stage-gate reviews, configuration control, requirements traceability, supplier management, and the slower decision rhythms of government customers and consortium partners.
  • Cultural fit with Leonardo's values of innovation, integrity, customer focus, sustainability, and teamwork, plus genuine interest in the dual-use civilian and defense mission; candidates uncomfortable with defense applications should target the civil aerospace, space, or cyber-commercial parts of the portfolio.
  • Evidence of continuous learning and curiosity, demonstrated through participation in initiatives such as Leonardo Innovation Award, Solvers Wanted challenges, Mission Future, Springboard, hackathons, open-source contributions, or recognized professional certifications (PMP, CISSP, INCOSE CSEP, CCNP, ISO 9001 lead auditor).
  • Willingness to be physically present at Leonardo sites, which include Rome (HQ and Tiburtina), Genoa, La Spezia, Naples, Pomigliano d'Arco, Cascina Costa, Vergiate, Venegono, Yeovil, Edinburgh, Basildon, Luton, Southampton, Lincoln, Warsaw, and Świdnik; fully remote roles are uncommon and security-classified work requires on-site presence.

Frequently Asked Questions

What ATS does Leonardo use and where do I apply?
Leonardo uses Workday for all global recruitment. The single authoritative career portal is leonardocompany.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/LeonardoCareerSite, which lists every advertised vacancy across Italy, the UK, the US, Poland, and other markets. Leonardo also operates a regional landing page at usa.leonardo.com/en/careers for US-specific opportunities, but applications still flow into the same Workday system. Do not apply via third-party job boards alone; even if you find a Leonardo posting on LinkedIn or Indeed, complete the official Workday application to ensure your CV reaches the recruiter.
Do I need security clearance to apply?
Not always to apply, but often to start. Many Leonardo roles, especially in defense electronics, secure communications, cyber, and platforms supporting national programs, require clearance such as Italian NOS Segreto, UK SC or DV, US Secret or Top Secret, or Polish equivalents. The job posting will specify whether clearance is required at hire or eligibility to obtain clearance is sufficient. Eligibility typically requires citizenship of the relevant nation (or dual nationality) and a clean background. State your current clearance status or eligibility clearly on your CV; it is one of the first filters recruiters apply.
What languages do I need to speak to work at Leonardo?
English is required across virtually every role because Leonardo operates international programs with partners in the UK, US, Japan, France, Germany, and Poland. For positions based in Italy, professional Italian (CEFR B2 or higher) is strongly preferred and often required, particularly for roles involving Italian customers, suppliers, or union-governed permanent contracts. UK-based roles generally require English only. Roles on specific consortia may benefit from French (MBDA, Thales Alenia Space), German (Airbus, MBDA), or Japanese (GCAP). List language proficiency at CEFR levels on your CV.
What is Leonardo's interview process like and how long does it take?
The standard process is a 30-45 minute recruiter screen, a 60-90 minute technical interview with the hiring manager (sometimes including a written test, case study, or coding exercise), and a final interview combining the hiring manager with HR and occasionally a senior technical authority. Total elapsed time runs 4-10 weeks for unclassified roles and can extend to several months when security clearance vetting is involved. Graduate programmes such as the Leonardo International Talent Programme add an assessment-center day with group exercises and presentations.
Does Leonardo offer remote work or smart working?
Leonardo offers smart working and flexible working arrangements where the role permits, with policies that vary by country, site, and CCNL or local labor agreement. However, fully remote roles are uncommon. Many positions touch classified programs, sensitive intellectual property, or laboratory and manufacturing environments that legally require on-site presence. Expect a hybrid model with multiple days per week on site, and assume on-site presence as the default for engineering, manufacturing, cyber, and security-cleared roles.
What benefits does Leonardo offer employees?
Benefits vary by country and contract level but typically include competitive base salary, performance bonuses, supplementary pension contributions (for example METASALUTE and Cometa for Italian employees, defined-contribution schemes in the UK and US), supplementary health insurance, life insurance, parental leave above statutory minimums, employee share plans, training budgets (Leonardo delivered approximately 1.4 million hours of training in the most recent reporting year), wellbeing programs, employee resource groups, gym subsidies or on-site facilities at larger campuses, canteen services, and relocation support for international moves. Italian employees are covered by the CCNL Metalmeccanici Industria collective agreement.
Can I apply if I am a student or recent graduate?
Yes, Leonardo runs an extensive early-career pipeline. Curricular and extracurricular internships are offered year-round through partnerships with Italian and international universities, including Politecnico di Milano, Politecnico di Torino, Sapienza University of Rome, Federico II, Imperial College London, Cranfield, and many others. Structured graduate programmes have included the Leonardo International Talent Programme, the HR Graduate Programme, and the Sustainability Excellence Programme. Initiatives such as Mission Future, Springboard, Solvers Wanted, and Girls@Polimi target students and early-career STEM talent. The /en/careers/students-and-graduates page on leonardo.com lists active opportunities; apply via the same Workday portal.
What does Leonardo look for in candidates beyond technical skills?
Leonardo looks for cultural fit with its stated values of innovation, integrity, sustainability, customer focus, and teamwork. Hiring managers value candidates who can collaborate across hierarchical and multinational teams, communicate clearly with both engineering and program-management stakeholders, navigate the slower decision rhythms of defense and aerospace customers, demonstrate ethical judgment in dual-use contexts, show curiosity and continuous-learning behavior, and remain patient and professional through long selection cycles. Diversity is a strategic priority, supported by gender-equality certification UNI/PdR 125:2022 and recognition from Fortune Italia.
What if there are no open positions matching my profile right now?
Use the 'Introduce Yourself' feature on the Workday portal at leonardocompany.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/LeonardoCareerSite/introduceYourself to register a speculative profile. Recruiters search this database when new requisitions open. Set up job alerts in Workday for your skill area and preferred locations, follow Leonardo on LinkedIn for early signal on graduate programmes and campaign hiring, and consider attending the company's recruiting events at universities and aerospace conferences such as the Farnborough International Airshow, Paris Air Show, DSEI, and AOC EW Europe.
Where are Leonardo's main offices and which sites are hiring most actively?
Leonardo's headquarters is in Rome at Piazza Monte Grappa. Major Italian sites include Rome Tiburtina, Genoa (Puccini and Fiumara), La Spezia (Valdilocchi), Naples (Fusaro and Pomigliano d'Arco), Cascina Costa, Vergiate, and Venegono Superiore. UK sites include Yeovil (helicopters), Edinburgh and Luton (electronics), Basildon and Southampton, and Lincoln. US operations centered on Leonardo DRS span sites in Arlington, Virginia, plus Texas, Florida, and other states. Polish operations are anchored at PZL-Świdnik. Hiring volume is highest at the Italian engineering campuses and the UK helicopter and electronics sites; the Workday portal's location filter is the most reliable real-time view.

Open Positions

Leonardo currently has 67 open positions.

Check Your Resume Before Applying → View 67 open positions at Leonardo

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