Launch Vehicle Manager

We're Hiring: Ground Systems Manager

Location: United Arab Emirates (Remote)Employment Type: Full-TimeExperience Level: Mid-Level to SeniorWork Arrangement: Fully RemoteAbout UsWe are a globally focused organization committed to developing and operating reliable, secure, and high-performance ground infrastructure supporting complex aerospace, satellite, communications, and mission operations.Our teams collaborate across Systems Engineering, Ground Operations, Software, Network Engineering, Mission Operations, Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Data, Hardware, Safety, Regulatory, and external technology partners to deliver resilient ground-based mission capabilities.The RoleWe are seeking an experienced Ground Systems Manager to lead the strategy, engineering, integration, deployment, operation, and continuous improvement of ground systems supporting satellite, space, aerospace, communications, and mission-control activities.The ideal candidate will oversee multidisciplinary ground infrastructure including mission-control systems, ground stations, telemetry, tracking and command, communications networks, data processing, monitoring, automation, cybersecurity, and operational support systems.Key ResponsibilitiesDevelop and implement ground systems strategies aligned with mission, operational, technical, and business objectives.Lead the architecture, engineering, integration, deployment, and lifecycle management of ground systems.Define system requirements, operational concepts, technical specifications, interfaces, and performance standards.Manage ground infrastructure supporting satellite and mission operations from development through operational deployment.Oversee ground stations, antennas, RF systems, telemetry, tracking and command systems, and associated infrastructure.Coordinate mission-control systems supporting spacecraft monitoring, command, scheduling, and operational planning.Manage ground data systems for telemetry reception, processing, storage, distribution, visualization, and analysis.Coordinate integration between ground systems, spacecraft interfaces, communications networks, cloud platforms, and enterprise systems.Manage network architecture, connectivity, routing, redundancy, and secure communications supporting ground operations.Establish requirements for system availability, latency, capacity, redundancy, recoverability, and operational resilience.Lead system integration and interface management across hardware, software, communications, and operational platforms.Coordinate factory acceptance testing, site acceptance testing, integration testing, verification, validation, and commissioning.Develop test plans covering functional, performance, interoperability, resilience, security, and operational scenarios.Manage system configuration, software releases, hardware upgrades, version control, and engineering change processes.Establish operational procedures for system monitoring, maintenance, troubleshooting, incident response, and recovery.Monitor ground-system performance, availability, utilization, capacity, latency, alarms, and service quality.Analyze system logs, telemetry, network data, operational events, and performance metrics to identify issues and improvement opportunities.Lead root-cause analysis for system failures, communication interruptions, data anomalies, and operational disruptions.Establish preventive and predictive maintenance strategies for critical ground infrastructure.Coordinate hardware maintenance, software maintenance, upgrades, spares, obsolescence management, and lifecycle planning.Develop redundancy, failover, disaster-recovery, backup, and business-continuity strategies.Establish contingency procedures for ground-station outages, communications failures, power interruptions, cybersecurity incidents, and other operational emergencies.Coordinate with Mission Operations teams to ensure ground systems meet mission schedules and operational requirements.Support launch, commissioning, early-orbit, routine operations, anomaly response, and other mission phases where applicable.Manage ground systems supporting command and control, tracking, telemetry, payload data, mission planning, and operational reporting.Coordinate ground systems with cloud, edge-computing, data-processing, AI, automation, and analytics platforms.Evaluate opportunities to automate ground operations, monitoring, scheduling, diagnostics, and routine system activities.Identify opportunities to apply AI, machine learning, predictive analytics, digital twins, and intelligent monitoring to ground infrastructure.Manage ground systems vendors, equipment manufacturers, software providers, system integrators, telecommunications providers, and technical contractors.Define supplier technical requirements, service levels, acceptance criteria, warranties, support models, and escalation procedures.Monitor supplier performance, technical quality, delivery schedules, service availability, and issue resolution.Manage ground systems budgets, capital investments, operating costs, project resources, and lifecycle expenditures.Evaluate technology investments based on performance, reliability, scalability, cybersecurity, lifecycle cost, and operational value.Support facility planning for ground stations, control centers, equipment rooms, network infrastructure, power, cooling, and physical security.Ensure ground infrastructure meets applicable electrical, telecommunications, environmental, safety, and operational requirements.Establish cybersecurity controls covering networks, servers, applications, communication links, access management, endpoints, and operational technology.Coordinate vulnerability management, security monitoring, access reviews, incident response, and recovery activities.Establish data-governance requirements covering mission data, telemetry, operational logs, system records, and sensitive information.Ensure appropriate controls for system access, authentication, authorization, encryption, backups, and auditability.Develop technical documentation covering system architecture, interfaces, configuration, operations, maintenance, testing, and recovery.Coordinate training for ground-system engineers, operators, technicians, mission personnel, and support teams.Establish competency requirements and knowledge-transfer programs for critical ground-system technologies.Conduct regular system health reviews, architecture assessments, capacity reviews, and technology-roadmap updates.Identify obsolescence risks and develop modernization and replacement strategies for aging ground infrastructure.Promote reliability engineering, operational excellence, continuous improvement, and data-driven decision-making.Provide management with regular reports covering system performance, availability, projects, costs, risks, incidents, cybersecurity, and improvement opportunities.Key Performance IndicatorsGround system availabilityMission-control system uptimeGround station availabilityCommunications link availabilityTelemetry reception success rateCommand success rateTracking accuracyData processing reliabilityData delivery success rateSystem latencyNetwork availabilityNetwork utilizationSystem capacity utilizationAlarm response timeIncident detection timeIncident resolution timeMean time between failuresMean time to repairUnplanned downtimePreventive maintenance completionPredictive maintenance effectivenessRecovery and failover performanceDisaster-recovery test performanceBackup success rateSoftware release success rateConfiguration complianceIntegration test completionVerification and validation performanceCommissioning schedule adherenceProject delivery performanceProject budget adherenceSupplier SLA performanceVendor response timeCybersecurity complianceVulnerability remediation performanceAccess-control complianceTraining completionDocumentation complianceSystem scalabilityLifecycle cost performanceContinuous-improvement savingsIdeal CandidateThe successful candidate should have strong experience in ground systems, satellite ground infrastructure, mission operations, aerospace systems, telecommunications, RF communications, systems engineering, or complex technical infrastructure, preferably within aerospace, space, defense, satellite communications, telecommunications, or advanced technology environments.The candidate should demonstrate:Strong understanding of ground-system architecture and mission-support infrastructure.Experience managing complex ground systems from engineering through operational deployment.Knowledge of telemetry, tracking and command, ground stations, RF systems, antennas, and communications networks.Experience with mission-control systems, monitoring platforms, scheduling systems, and operational data systems.Strong systems-engineering and interface-management capabilities.Experience integrating hardware, software, networking, cloud, data-processing, and operational platforms.Knowledge of network architecture, cybersecurity, redundancy, disaster recovery, and high-availability infrastructure.Experience with system testing, integration, commissioning, verification, validation, and operational acceptance.Strong troubleshooting, incident management, and root-cause-analysis skills.Experience managing technology vendors, system integrators, telecommunications providers, and technical contractors.Ability to evaluate technology investments, technical risks, lifecycle costs, and system performance.Strong understanding of configuration management, change control, software release management, and technical documentation.Experience with preventive and predictive maintenance and lifecycle management of critical infrastructure.Knowledge of applicable aerospace, telecommunications, cybersecurity, safety, and regulatory requirements.Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret operational, network, telemetry, and system-performance data.