Skills Lead

Job Description

The National Capabilities and Clusters Team’s aim is to support the development of a productive UK Space Ecosystem by connecting people, places, ideas and opportunities to boost local prosperity.

They are an enthusiastic and driven group that connect academia and industry to drive new collaborations and commercialise research. The Skills Lead is an exciting new opportunity in this team that will involve being responsible for the delivery and evolution of the Space Placements in Industry (SPIN) programme as it progresses into its second decade, as well as supporting the Space Skills Manager in implementing the Catapult’s Skills Roadmap and developing our Education and Outreach activities.

We are looking for someone who wants to make a real difference and help provide the wider UK space sector with access to the talent and future workforce that it needs.

 We are seeking a Skills Lead who can:

• Work with key stakeholders, including the UK Space Agency, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and UKRI to coordinate skills activities and support the development of policy.

• Manage the SPIN programme, engage with businesses to ensure a healthy pipeline of internship opportunities and develop the programme for a sustainable future

• Produce case studies and career path profiles which will support Educators and Outreach activities

• Engage with internal and external stakeholders from across the space community to understand their skills requirements and inform future workforce planning.

• Engage with universities and students (at all levels) to promote opportunities to work in the space sector and to help them understand the skills the sector requires.

• Communicate on the skills needs and activities in the UK space sectors and report against performance metrics. 

 Skills and Experience required:

• Ideally have knowledge and experience of the space sector and its skills needs, other relevant industries can be considered (nuclear, defence, aerospace, etc)

• Excellent planning, coordination and organisation skills.

• Effective team player with excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

• Ability to coordinate and work alongside senior staff, technical experts and other stakeholders, building and managing relationships in industry, government and education

• Ability to provide inspiration and encouragement to young people where needed but also to give frank advice where appropriate, possibly as a STEM Ambassador

You know you have been successful when….

• You have delivered a full and varied range of opportunities under the SPIN scheme which is also regionally representative

• The annual cohort have graduated from the scheme and been inspired to pursue careers in the space or technology sector (if not already offered jobs in the sector)

• Increased interest amongst the student body as a whole for highly sought after technical disciplines such as software engineering, artificial intelligence and machine learning, data science and radio frequency (RF) engineering

• You have had a tangible impact on the number of STEM ambassadors in the community and across the Catapult.

How we work:

We strive to create a high trust environment that enables team members to bring their whole selves to work – this helps to create the foundations of an innovation culture. Our shared values are critical to this:

• We care - for our people, our partners, and our planet.

• We connect - and engage with people and ideas.

• We learn - and grow, as people and as an industry

Underpinning this is our belief in great teams, our combined efforts will always deliver outcomes beyond that of any individual providing we are honest through debate, experiment and reflect, and create shared resolutions in support of our purpose. Live these values, work to our principles, take ownership to deliver, and we are certain you will thrive with us.

 Important notice for applicants: We use tools to detect plagiarism and the use of AI or chatbots for applicant answers. If plagiarism, AI use (such as ChatGPT) or similar software are found to have been used in your application you will not be considered for this or future roles within the Satellite Applications Catapult

At the Satellite Applications Catapult, we're committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workforce. We welcome candidates from all corners of the globe, but due to legal and logistical considerations, we want to be transparent about the potential visa-related challenges that could arise. Our ability to offer sponsorship will depend on the level of interest for our roles and salary level