Would you like to be at the heart of developing innovative and transformative ideas? Are you interested in being part of a team that ensures space technology can address UK and global societal challenges? Do you want to lead a Mission which will make a real difference? If so, you may be who we’re looking for!

The Satellite Applications Catapult (Catapult) is at the forefront of the burgeoning UK Space Industry. Our mission leads identify and unlock the growth opportunities and impacts from a space sector perspective. This is a unique opportunity to work with experts all over the country. Working collaboratively, you will create and lead a team to help grow the UK’s space sector.

Our four missions are strongly aligned with the Space Strategy themes to “Grow and level-up our space economy” and “Use space to deliver for UK citizens and the world”. They create the conditions for the space sector to flourish by delivering innovation with purpose. The mission-oriented innovation approach provides a framework for targeted innovation, through which we will achieve our intended impacts: UK growth, development and adoption of satellite-enabled technologies, and delivery of cross-cutting policy priorities.

As the Mission Lead within Our Sustainable Earth, you will be creating a common purpose, uniting a diverse and evolving portfolio of activities involving multiple stakeholders, engaged in innovation towards impact in a shared problem space. In simple terms, what that means for us is that each mission is a shared area for impact, which brings together the work that we do under shared goals.

This mission will unlock the use of satellite enabled assets for social cohesion and inclusion, mitigating climate change and assisting adaptation to its effects. Other Sustainable Earth activities could focus on biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse, promote environmental regeneration or ensure a reliable and fair energy transition. The detail is for you to shape.

Reporting into our Chief of Missions, this is a highly networked role that requires an ability to work under pressure and to challenging deadlines. It requires knowledge and skills in team management, leadership and collaboration, strong commercial acumen and depth of knowledge and experience in a key area that would enable at least one of our Missions (that could be anything from space systems engineering, Net zero, anthropology etc). Prior experience of bidding for and shaping technical projects and services is an advantage but not essential.

Key Responsibilities:

As the Mission lead, you will….

• Lead - Lead delivery of the Mission through a programme of activities designed and led by you. This will involve collaboration with IUK PM, Delivery team and engineering teams, Impact teams and Governance function). You will create a strong core and extended team with accountability, forward planning, clear subject matter expertise and strategy, positive values, professional behaviour and collaborative ways of working.

• Collaborate – you will demonstrate by example that the best solutions come from a diverse group of thinkers, within our organisation and beyond it

• Make a difference - Drive growth of the team’s impact for the UK, through thought-leadership, collaboration, creating and pursuing opportunities and delivery on commitments.

• Meet needs - Ensure availability of staff is well-matched to foreseen and potential demands from our activities,

• Manage and support your People - Line Management and development of staff within the team.

• Coordinate – Ensure that SAC is more than the sum of its parts. Support and draw on every function of the Catapult, to achieve best possible impact.

• Shape and lead the strategy and delivery of the Intervention (including projects and services that comprise it) ensuring realisation of outputs and outcomes towards the Catapult’s mission goals and objectives.  

You will also be involved in…

• Developing a financial plan for impact creating activity and a schedule for milestones.

• Preparing to adapt, pause or cancel the activities if it is the best decision for the Mission and overall Catapult objectives.

• Think outside the box - activities will vary in maturity and scale, and therefore, intervention owners may be focused on different aspects at different times, for example framing big ideas whereas others may be focused on achieving funding and delivery. Interventions cannot be funded by core grant alone.

We expect that you would have the following skills and experience…

• Experience of building, leading and developing high performing, multi-disciplinary teams

• Ability to support the development of commercial opportunities to deliver of the Catapults purpose and your mission

• A depth of knowledge in one or more key enabling areas for your missions

• Ability to inspire, in your own style, to internal and external stakeholders

• Experience or ability to push conventional boundaries to create greater impact

• Expert influencer with ability to rapidly change and adapt as needed

• Aspirational thinker but pragmatic when needed

You will also need to be able to travel when needed within the UK.

You know you have been successful when…

Our missions capture the key growth opportunities and impacts from a space sector perspective, and our mission leads are at the forefront of this new framework. This is a unique opportunity to carve our new strategic direction, drive innovation and maximise societal and economic impact for the space industry.

How we work….

We strive to create a high trust, high performance and inclusive 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.

This job description set outs the skills and experience we think are needed to be able to perform in this job. However, if you believe you can deliver in this role then we want to hear from you.

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. If you need any additional support during the application process, please do reach out and connect. We also invite you to share feedback via Applied.