Director of System Architecture and Engineering (London, GB, E18RU) @ EUTELSAT SA

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Job Overview We are looking for an enthusiastic and skilled Director of System Architecture and Engineering to join our team.. This is a unique opportunity to make a significant impact within an organization that values growth, teamwork, and professional development.

Who You Are

The position is a leadership role within Operational System Evolution Architecture and Engineering for the deployed LEO Satellite Constellation End-to-End System, managing two complementary teams led by Technical Leaders: GN-SAE, focused on a unified end-to-end ground-network approach ("Connect as One"), and C-SAE, focused on coherent LEO constellation and fleet evolution ("Fly as One"). The Director provides independent Technical Authority governance across the assigned programmes and the complete End-to-End System, while the Technical Leaders drive engineering execution and team delivery.

The Director coordinates with the organisation responsible for next-generation system specification and design to ensure clear lifecycle boundaries, managed interfaces and appropriate technology or capability transition. The role interacts with the Connectivity Business Unit, Programme and Project Management, Space Segment, Ground Network Engineering, Systems Integration and Test, User Terminal teams, Operations, IT, Strategy, suppliers and external partners .

What You’ll Do

• Lead, organise and develop the GN-SAE and C-SAE teams within the Operational System Evolution Architecture and Engineering function, setting priorities, capacity plans, engineering practices and competency-development objectives while empowering each team Technical Leader to direct day-to-day technical execution and delivery.
• Act as Technical Authority for the ongoing programmes and systems formally assigned to the role, with final accountability for the technical integrity, architectural coherence, compliance and End-to-End System-level risk acceptance of the LEO Satellite Constellation System.
• Establish and govern End-to-End System architecture principles, technical policies, engineering standards and decision processes for the controlled evolution of the deployed operational LEO Satellite Constellation End-to-End System, all constituent segments and their interfaces.
• Lead and develop a high-performing team of system architects and engineers by: providing technical guidance and professional mentoring; setting clear expectations for quality, accountability and collaboration; and supporting individual growth, capability development and succession planning.
• Approve key End-to-End System requirements, architecture baselines, major cross-domain trade-offs, deviations, waivers and non-conformances, ensuring the technical baseline reflects business and operational needs.
• Chair or provide Technical Authority input to major lifecycle reviews, including SRR, PDR and CDR, and support qualification, acceptance and go/no-go decisions within delegated authority.
• Serve as the final technical escalation point for cross-segment disputes, integration issues and decisions with major operational, compliance or program impacts.
• Oversee end-to-end ground-network architecture evolution, requirements, baselines, interfaces, performance, trade-offs, integration, verification, acceptance and vendor assurance.
• Oversee the evolution of LEO constellation architecture and engineering across: the Space Segment; the Fleet Management Segment; and associated ground-based communications scheduling capabilities.
• Ensure suppliers, system integrators and internal implementation teams deliver evidence consistent with approved requirements, interfaces, architecture baselines and system acceptance objectives.
• Maintain an End-to-End System evolution roadmap for the deployed LEO Satellite Constellation System that balances service continuity, interoperability, resilience, security, constellation and service performance, cost, schedule, operability and maintainability.
• Represent Operational System Evolution Architecture and Engineering in executive technical reviews, programme governance, partner and supplier forums, providing clear recommendations, decisions and visibility of major technical risks.

What You’ll Need

• Master’s degree or PhD in Telecommunications, Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering or equivalent.
• At least 12 years of experience in telecommunications, satellite communications or complex end-to-end system engineering.
• Significant architecture and engineering leadership responsibility in LEO satellite constellation systems or comparable safety- and mission-critical systems of systems would be an asset.

Proven experience leading multidisciplinary End-to-End System engineering teams and Technical Leaders across complex, multi-stakeholder programmes involving space, ground, fleet management, user terminal, service and core-network, operations and supplier domains. Deep understanding of deployed LEO Satellite Constellation End-to-End Systems and their controlled operational evolution, including orbital constellation and Space Segment considerations, constellation operations, ground networks, fleet management, air interface, resource management, service and core-network functions, user terminals, scheduling, operations, and End-to-End System integration, verification and performance.

Expert radio-system and RF engineering capability, including radio-link design and link budgets, RF subsystem architecture, propagation and interference analysis, modulation and coding, communication protocols, and end-to-end performance verification. Strong experience in End-to-End System requirements engineering, architecture governance, CONOPS, cross-segment trade-offs, technical reviews, risk management, supplier assurance, change introduction and technical decision making for deployed operational systems.

Recognised technical leader able to exercise independent judgement, challenge constructively, resolve ambiguity, align stakeholders and remain accountable for system-level technical integrity. Where You’ll Work: London, UK /Virginia, US The Eutelsat treats the protection of personal data submitted to it seriously. By submitting this application, you agree to the collection and retention of your personal data by the Eutelsat and acknowledge notice of, and understand the terms of Eutelsat’s Privacy Policy (as amended from time to time). This role is a Eutelsat job opening; all of our open roles are posted on the current Eutelsat websites. Please note that when you are applying, your application may be seen by both teams.