Netanel Ben-Shalev began working at Elbit during his post-army break, and never imagined that his technical job, which he began as a temporary worker, would turn into an interesting career. “When I was discharged as a combat soldier, I heard that Elbit was looking for temporary employees for radio testing. My job was as simple as can be: drive the car and make sure the device works properly throughout the test,” he says with a smile. “From there on, I moved forwards – all the way until where I am now.”
My story
As he advanced at Elbit, Netanel fulfilled multiple roles in the world of radio engineering and today leads tool development and validation teams in the PHY field of the radio department. “We’re responsible for all validation and tool development,” he says. “Our discipline, PHY, deals with the physical parts of radio. Our job is to build tools for development, debugging, and tests that will aid the development and creation of the product. Working in the radio department in general, and the PHY administration specifically, is a new platform for innovation, as well as the ability to express yourself and conquer new territory. If you have a dream, an idea, and methodology – the platform and work environment will provide a way to make it happen.”
There was a moment during his years at Elbit that truly encapsulated his pride: “The biggest thing we’ve done was to build automation processes and testing methods entirely from scratch. We went from a place where bugs and issues were constantly being discovered in the later developmental stages, to being able to discover them in very early stages, through automation. Watching years’ worth of work succeed and reach other fields around us felt incredible.”
Netanel has six children still living at home. He leaves early in the morning to go to work at the company’s site in Netanya and returns in the evening. “None of this would be possible without my wife – it’s an honor to be with her. She is a schoolteacher and takes care of the house and kids. We’re a tight-knit family, and we love to travel and spend time together.”
