Job
- Level
- Lead
- Job Field
- Software, Project
- Employment Type
- Full Time
- Contract Type
- Permanent employment
- Location
- Brunswick
- Working Model
- Hybrid, Onsite
Job Summary
In this role, you will lead a small engineering team to develop advanced space systems, focusing on flight dynamics and data integration, while ensuring customer requirements are met through close collaboration.
Job Technologies
Your role in the team
- We are looking for a Space Surveillance Technical Lead who thrives at the intersection of technology, people leadership, and customer success. In this hybrid technical + management role, you will lead a small engineering team, manage key customer projects, and contribute directly to the development of advanced space systems across flight dynamics, SSA/SST, and mission operations.
- You'll act as both a hands-on engineer and a strategic project leader, guiding software development, steering technical discussions with satellite operators, and ensuring customer satisfaction across commercial and institutional missions.
- This is a high-impact role with broad ownership. You'll contribute to technical delivery, customer success, and strategic initiatives, including proposals and projects for space sustainability, SSA/SST, and mission operations.
- Lead the design, development, and operation of space systems, including orbit determination and propagation, maneuver planning and trajectory optimization, SSA/SST processing, catalog maintenance, and sensor data integration.
- Architect, implement, and review production-grade software using Python, Java, FORTRAN, Orekit, or similar orbit mechanics libraries.
- Conduct verification and validation (V&V) with real mission datasets.
- Lead a high-performing engineering team (2-6 people), including mentoring, coordinating workloads, and guiding technical decisions.
- Drive end-to-end project delivery, ensuring technical quality, timelines, and customer success.
- Work directly with satellite operators and institutional partners to capture and refine mission requirements, lead high-level technical discussions, and translate operational needs into actionable system features.
- Serve as the primary technical point of contact for key accounts, building long-term customer relationships.
- Coordinate cross-functional efforts for proposals, strategic initiatives, and roadmap development.
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Our expectations of you
Qualifications
- M.Sc. or higher in Aerospace/Space Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, or another relevant technical field.
- Proven ability to drive full lifecycle software development: requirements analysis and refinement, architecture definition, system and algorithm design, implementation planning, testing, integration, V&V, deployment and operational follow-up.
- Strong background in technical project management, including prioritization and backlog management, cross-team coordination (engineering, product, operations), tracking deliverables, risks, and milestones, efficient communication with technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Ability to work directly with customers to lead technical discussions, clarify mission requirements, and ensure delivery quality and operational readiness.
Experience
- Approx. 5 years of experience in the space engineering domain, including proven experience in coordinating or leading technical projects in the space domain (flight dynamics, SSA/SST, mission operations, or ground segment software).
- Hands-on experience with software engineering in Python, Fortran, Java, or similar, and familiarity with modern development practices (CI/CD, testing, DevOps workflows).
- Experience providing guidance to small engineering teams, including mentoring and task coordination.
- Professional experience in international, distributed teams and valid EU work authorization.
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What we offer
- With a lean hierarchy and small working groups, you define your own way of work including flexible work hours.
- Work on groundbreaking space sustainability challenges with a team of top-tier engineers and scientists.
- Enjoy technical freedom. Influence system architecture, research methodologies, and data integration approaches.
- Grow continuously with access to training budgets, industry conferences, and networking opportunities.
- Be part of a strong engineering culture, with regular knowledge-sharing sessions, technical deep dives, and innovation sprints.
- Great team spirit, with company-wide events such as monthly all-hands lunches, and social activities like laser tag, dinners, and team-building outings.
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Benefits
Work-Life-Integration
Topics that you deal with on the job
Job Locations
This is your employer
OKAPI:Orbits GmbH
OKAPI:Orbits is a forward-thinking SaaS startup based in Braunschweig, Germany, focused on enhancing the safety and sustainability of satellite missions. The company offers AI-driven platforms and consulting services for space traffic management, supporting satellite operators throughout the entire lifecycle of their missions. With solutions for collision avoidance and mission design optimization, OKAPI:Orbits contributes to making the space environment safer.
Description
- Company Type
- Startup
- Working Model
- Hybrid, Onsite
- Industry
- Aviation, Space Travel
Space Surveillance Technical Lead
- Location
- Brunswick
- Working Model
- Hybrid, Onsite
- Diversity
- Open for all genders
- English Only
- English only required
