Mission Control Applications for New Programmes Team Leader

Mission Control Applications for New Programmes Team Leader

EUMETSAT - European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites

Darmstadt, Germany

EUMETSAT is Europe’s meteorological satellite agency, operating a fleet of satellites delivering weather and climate-related satellite data and images to our users worldwide, helping protect lives, property and industries. Further satellites are in preparation for launch.

As successful candidate you will be a member of the Mission Control Applications and Tools Competence Area within the Satellite System Ground Segments (SGS).

In support to both Operations & Services to Users (OPS) and Programme Preparation & Development (PRD) departments, you will be responsible for the management of activities related to coordinated and harmonised development of Satellite Control Center elements for EUMETSAT’s new Earth Observation missions such as CO2M, EPS-Sterna, EPS-Aeolus, Sentinel-3 NG, etc.

Elements typically part of Satellite Control Center are Mission Control System, Automation System, Flight Dynamics System, Mission Planning System, Spacecraft Simulator and Operations Preparation tools.

You will manage and coordinate activities and lead teams of talented engineers. Additionally, you will have an overview of all upcoming new missions and will be responsible for ensuring that efficient and harmonised design and engineering solutions across those different missions are applied.

The contract for the successful candidate will only be issued after obtaining formal approval of the EPS-Sterna Programme by EUMETSAT Member States, expected in Q1 2026.

What you’ll be doing

In this role you will be in charge of the following:

• Manage a portfolio of projects and activities for the definition and development of Satellite Control Center elements for new missions;
• Coordinate and manage teams of staff members and contracted support;
• Liaise with stakeholders of new missions about new control center designs aligned with the EUMETSAT strategy;
• Support all activities related to the promotion and re-use of generic and cost-efficient solutions for existing and future requirements and conduct studies in areas relevant to operations preparation functions and systems and their evolutions;
• Coordinate procurements of industrial support covering development activities and necessary engineering services;
• Support technical interactions with EUMETSAT partner agencies regarding areas relevant to Mission Control Functions;
• Maintain the technical knowledge base of the mission control functional domain with identification of relevant improvements and formalization of lessons learned;
• Support the Mission Control Application Product Managers in the implementation of mission control strategy;
• Support the Mission Control Applications and Tools Competence Area Manager in defining long term plans and roadmaps to harmonise engineering, maintenance and evolutions of Mission Control Systems across all satellite systems exploited by EUMETSAT.

What we offer

• Excellent salary, of up to Euro 8,000 NET (after income tax) based on skills and experience;
• Flexible working time including additional flexi-leave;
• Full medical coverage for employee and family;
• Attractive pension;
• 30 days of annual leave + 14.5 days public holidays;
• Training and development support;
• Relocation allowance and support (if applicable).

Requirements

Qualifications:

• University degree (or equivalent) in a relevant discipline.

Skills and Experience:

As successful candidate, you will bring:

• Demonstrated professional experience in applications design and development of mission operations applications with a high level of involvement in both project management and technical management;
• Demonstrated ability to lead and coordinate engineering teams, including project management and development of key competences;
• Proven experience in the procurement and management of industrial contracts for software application development and engineering support services;
• End-to-end Mission Control System software development lifecycle covering phases from specification to maintenance and operations (e.g. requirements engineering, design, development, integration, testing and operation);
• CCSDS and ECSS standards relevant to the Mission Control System domain;
• Strong planning, analysis and presentation skills, coupled with a high-degree of interpersonal awareness and experience working as part of team.

Languages:

• Candidates must be able to work effectively in English and have some knowledge of French.

APPLICATIONS MUST BE SUBMITTED IN ENGLISH. WE WILL BE UNABLE TO CONSIDER APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED IN OTHER LANGUAGES.

EUMETSAT is an international organisation employing staff from across all 30 member states and this role is being advertised on multiple international job boards, but please note that this role would be based in Darmstadt, Germany and would require international applicants to relocate if successful.

More about us

EUMETSAT’s role is to establish and operate meteorological satellites to monitor the weather and climate from space - 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This information is supplied to the National Meteorological Services of the organisation's Member and Cooperating States in Europe, as well as other users worldwide.

EUMETSAT also operates several Copernicus missions on behalf of the European Union and provide data services to the Copernicus marine and atmospheric services and their users.

As an intergovernmental European Organisation, EUMETSAT can recruit nationals only from the 30 Member States (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom).