Director, Satellite Business International | Directeur(trice), Développement Commercial International - Satellites Paris, France

Paris, France

Vast is developing next-generation space stations and space infrastructure using an incremental, hardware-rich, and low-cost approach. Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches in 2027, followed by additional Haven modules. Additionally, the company recently announced Vast Satellite , a high-power satellite product line leveraging its space station components and the heritage of Haven Demo.

Headquartered in Long Beach, California , and with more than 1,000 employees and over a billion dollars in private capital, Vast has built the facilities required to manufacture and operate America’s next space station. The company plans to develop future habitats and systems for the Moon and Mars, dedicated space stations for government partners, and other crewed systems that will unlock the expanding long-term space economy.

Vast is looking for a Director, Satellite Business Development International , reporting to the SVP, Satellite Business Development & Commercialization , to lead commercial (communications, Earth observation, sensing, defense, and in-orbit compute applications) and international government‑focused business development for Vast Satellites. This role is focused on markets outside the United States — including Europe, the Middle East, and Asia — and will lead customer engagement, opportunity development, capture strategy, government/defense engagement, and partnership efforts that advance Vast's initiatives to develop, manufacture, and operate advanced satellite bus platforms.

This is a small, senior founding commercial team: the role demands both business development "hunter" instincts (creating markets and demand where none exist yet) and proven "closer" skills (negotiating and executing contracts from single-digit millions to hundreds of millions of dollars).

This will be a full-time, exempt position open to a flexible international location as described above.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a comprehensive international commercial and government market strategy spanning Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, aligned with Vast's business objectives.
• Build and maintain a market and competitive intelligence view across international commercial and government space customers, distinguishing Vast's positioning from competitors in each region.
• Lead internal planning for international opportunity prioritization, capture strategy, and pipeline development across multiple allied and partner markets.
• Lead customer engagement across opportunity identification, mission scoping, capability briefings, and early concept development with international commercial operators, Earth observation companies, defense ministries, and government entities.
• Leverage a strong, pre-existing senior-level network across the international space/defense value chain to open doors with potential customers and identify competitive threats early.
• Lead proposal development and coordinate cross-functional contributions from engineering, program management, finance, legal, and export-control/compliance teams, supported by the team's BD analyst and pre-sales engineer.
• Own pipeline development, forecasting, and reporting across all international commercial and government accounts.
• Negotiate and close contracts for international commercial and government/defense missions and associated services, navigating varying national procurement, export-control (e.g., ITAR/EAR), and partnership frameworks.
• Coordinate with Vast's National Security team where international programs intersect with US Government stakeholders or content.
• Represent Vast at international space, aerospace, and defense industry events across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
• Deliver presentations, participate in panels, and provide senior/C-suite-level briefings that communicate the capabilities and value of Vast's satellite platforms to international commercial, government, and defense audiences.

Minimum Qualifications

• 12+ years of relevant experience in space/aerospace business development, sales, capture management, or government/defense contracting, with demonstrated success operating in Europe, the Middle East, and/or Asia.
• Proven track record of personally originating and closing contracts, including deals in the tens of millions of dollars or above.
• Established, verifiable senior and executive-level relationships with potential customers, and knowledge of the competitive landscape across multiple international space/defense markets.
• Background in the space/aerospace value chain (launch, satellite bus, payload, prime integration, or operations), ideally complementary to satellite operations — e.g., Earth observation or international defense.
• Deep understanding of international government procurement and partnership structures relevant to space and defense programs.
• Strong technical understanding and ability to communicate complex systems to international commercial, defense, and government audiences.
• Excellent communication, analytical, collaboration, and interpersonal skills; comfortable operating across cultures and languages.
• Ability to operate independently, prioritize effectively, and manage multiple international efforts simultaneously in a fast-paced, lean-team environment.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Existing relationships and credibility across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
• Fluency in languages relevant to target markets (French, Arabic, Japanese, etc.).
• Experience working alongside or coordinating with in-country government affairs teams (e.g., French/EU government affairs).
• Familiarity with export-control regimes (ITAR/EAR) in international satellite programs.

Additional Requirements

• Ability to travel 50%+ of the time.

We calibrate level and compensation to the selected candidate's experience and demonstrated capability. We welcome applicants across a range of experience levels to apply.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Base salary will vary depending on job‑related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full‑time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, generous paid time off; up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days of vacation for non‑exempt staff with the ability to cash‑out unused vacation annually, paid parental leave, short and long‑term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks. We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high‑quality meals for employees.

U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS

The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

As set forth in Vast’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection.As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service‑connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three‑year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.