SVP, Spacecraft Operations

Job Description

Job Description

Company Summary

The Senior Vice President of Spacecraft Operations is the chief steward of our orbital fleet and ground infrastructure. This role demands a rare blend of deep technical mastery and executive poise, overseeing the lifecycle of assets from launch integration to decommission. You will lead a mission-critical organization comprising spacecraft controllers, engineers, and ground systems experts to ensure 24/7/365 broadcast continuity and operational excellence.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

1. Strategic Flight Leadership & Innovation

• Fleet Roadmap: Architect and execute long-term strategies for fleet health, propellant management, and maneuver planning to maximize asset longevity.
• Modernization: Lead the transition toward AI-driven telemetry analytics to move from reactive to predictive maintenance.
• Policy Ownership: Define the "Gold Standard" for operational protocols, ensuring the fleet operates with 99.999% reliability.

1. Mission Control & Ground Operations

• 24/7/365 Oversight: Direct the real-time operations of the satellite fleet, serving as the final authority on anomaly resolution and risk mitigation.
• Ground Segment Integration: Manage global earth station infrastructure, optimizing antenna systems and data processing to support high-throughput payloads.
• Integration & Test (I&T): Oversee the seamless handover of new spacecraft from manufacturers into the operational fleet.

1. Organizational Mastery & Stakeholder Management

• Talent Development: Mentor and scale a high-performing team of engineers and controllers, fostering a culture of technical rigor and psychological safety under pressure.
• Cross-Functional Liaison: Partner with Regulatory, Business Development, and Network Planning to align orbital capabilities with commercial growth.
• External Advocacy: Represent the company before the FCC, ITU, and international space traffic bodies.

Skills, Experience and Requirements

• Experience 15+ years in spacecraft ops or aerospace leadership; proven track record of managing large-scale satellite constellations.
• Crisis Management: Demonstrated & flight-controller; temperament—the ability to lead high-stakes anomaly resolution without hesitation.
• Technical Depth: Mastery of orbital mechanics, TT&C, and ground-to-space network protocols (LEO/MEO/GEO experience preferred).
• Fiscal Oversight: Experience managing multi-million dollar OPEX/CAPEX budgets and complex vendor contracts.
• Education: BS in Aerospace, Electrical Engineering, or Physics. MS/PhD or MBA (Highly Preferred).
• Regulatory: Expert-level knowledge of ITU/FCC licensing and space debris mitigation guidelines.
• Future-Tech: Familiarity with high-throughput satellites (HTS) and automated station-keeping systems.

Benefits

We offer versatile health perks, including flexible spending accounts, HSA, a 401(k) Plan with company match, ESPP, career opportunities, and a flexible time away plan; all benefits can be viewed here: EchoStar Benefits.

 

The base pay range shown is a guideline. Individual total compensation will vary based on factors such as qualifications, skill level, and competencies; compensation is based on the role's location and is subject to change based on work location. 

 

Candidates need to successfully complete a pre-employment screen, which may include a drug test and DMV check. Our company is committed to fostering an inclusive and equitable workplace where every individual has the opportunity to succeed. We are dedicated to providing individuals with criminal or arrest records a fair chance of employment in accordance with local, state, and federal laws.

 

The posting will be active for a minimum of 3 days. The active posting will continue to extend by 3 days until the position is filled.

 

We pride ourselves on developing and promoting talent as an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status. EchoStar will accommodate the sincerely held religious beliefs of employees if such accommodations are not undue hardships and are otherwise within the bounds of applicable law. All qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with local, state, and federal law. You may redact any information that identifies age, date of birth, or dates of school/graduation from your application documents before submission and throughout our application process.

EchoStar will provide reasonable accommodation to otherwise qualified job applicants and employees with known physical or mental disabilities, unless doing so poses an undue hardship on the Company, poses a direct threat of substantial harm to others, or is otherwise not required by law. EchoStar has a more detailed Accommodation Policy that applies to employees. EchoStar endeavors to make echostar.com and jobs.echostar.com accessible to users. Please contact View email address on ziprecruiter.com if you would like to discuss the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process. This contact information is for accommodation requests only; do not use this contact information to inquire about the status of applications.

Click the links to access the following statements: EEO Policy Statement, Pay Transparency, EEOC Know Your Rights (English/Spanish)