Senior Space Segment Architect

Senior Space Segment Architect

D-Orbit

Lomazzo, Italy

The Senior Space Segment Architect plays a key role within the Business Unit Government & Defense, acting as the technical authority responsible for the definition, consolidation and evolution of the space segment architecture of complex institutional and defense missions.

The role requires strong system‑level expertise and the ability to translate mission objectives, customer needs and programmatic constraints into robust, compliant and cost‑effective space segment solutions. The Senior Space Segment Architect operates across all mission phases, from early concept and architectural trade‑offs to development, verification and delivery, interfacing closely with customers, partners and multidisciplinary engineering teams.

The position further contributes to proposal activities and to the definition of product roadmaps and long‑term development strategies, ensuring alignment between market evolution, institutional requirements and the company’s technology and business objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and lead the end-to-end space segment architecture for institutional, government and defense space missions, ensuring coherence across platform, payload and space segment elements.
• Translate mission objectives and customer needs into consolidated space segment architectures, including system budgets, functional decomposition and interface definitions.
• Drive system-level trade-offs and architectural decisions considering performance, cost, schedule, risk and program constraints.
• Define and maintain space segment requirements, ensuring proper allocation to system and subsystem levels and full traceability across the lifecycle.
• Develop and control key system budgets (mass, power, data, thermal, pointing), ensuring consistency with mission requirements and design maturity.
• Coordinate interfaces between space segment, ground segment and launch segment, ensuring technical consistency and compatibility.
• Support project execution by providing architectural guidance during design, AIT, verification and validation phases.
• Lead and participate in system-level technical reviews and act as technical interface with customers, partners and institutional stakeholders.
• Contribute to proposal and pre-sales activities by defining space segment concepts, architectures, development approaches and technical risk assessments.
• Contribute within the BU technical team to the definition of product, system and technology roadmaps, aligned with corporate strategy and market trends.

Skills & Qualifications

• Minimum 10+ years of professional experience in space system engineering and space segment architecture roles.
• Proven experience in defining space segment architectures for institutional, governmental or defense missions.
• Demonstrated experience covering the full development lifecycle of a satellite program, from early mission phases (Phase 0/A/B) through detailed design, AIT, verification, qualification and in‑orbit delivery.
• Direct experience on ESA and Institutional programs (e.g.: EO programs like Copernicus, MoD programs), including familiarity with contractual frameworks, technical governance and ECSS compliance processes.
• Ability to operate effectively within multi‑stakeholder institutional environments, interfacing with agencies, prime contractors and international partners throughout the program lifecycle.
• Strong background in spacecraft system engineering, including requirements management, interfaces and system budgets.
• Solid knowledge of ECSS standards and familiarity with institutional program environments (ESA, national agencies, defense).
• Demonstrated ability to perform system-level trade-offs and manage technical complexity in multidisciplinary environments.
• Experience interfacing with ground and launch segments and with multiple industrial partners.
• Strong leadership and communication skills, with the ability to engage customers and stakeholders at senior technical level.
• Experience in proposal preparation and early mission phase studies (Phase 0/A/B) is considered a strong asset.
• Good communication skills and willingness to operate in an international and institutional environment.
• Deep knowledge of AI tools.