Phoenix Study Manager - European Space Agency (Noordwijk)

About this position

The summary below is published by European Space Agency on the official vacancy notice. Our own analysis — salary realism, comparable openings, career trajectory, language profile — follows further down the page.

Key responsibilities

According to the vacancy notice, the role centres on the following duties:

• Plan and manage Phoenix Phase B1/B2 industrial and internal study activities through reviews and decision gates
• Establish and maintain integrated study plan including scope, deliverables, milestones, interfaces, resources, schedule, cost and risk baseline
• Coordinate consolidation of mission objectives, stakeholder needs, mission requirements and system requirements with traceability
• Lead assessment and maturation of reference mission scenarios, concepts of operations, system architectures, design drivers, trade-offs, performance indicators, system budgets and interfaces
• Ensure end-to-end technical coherence of proposed system across space, ground, user, service, operations and security elements
• Prepare technical elements of procurement documentation and support proposal evaluations and negotiations
• Monitor industrial technical performance and ensure completeness, quality and timely delivery of contractual study outputs
• Lead preparation and conduct of mission- and system-level study reviews

Are you eligible?

Check these requirements from the notice before investing time in an application:

• Education: Master's degree in a relevant engineering discipline required, or bachelor's degree with additional four years of relevant professional experience
• Experience: Four years of relevant professional experience in early-phase telecommunications mission and system studies
• Key skills: Experience in Phase A, B1 and/or B2 telecommunications mission and system studies, Multi-disciplinary knowledge of end-to-end satellite communication systems, Requirements engineering, Concept-of-operations definition, System architecture, Trade-off analysis, System budgets and interfaces management, Industrial study initiation and management, Technical procurement documentation, Contract monitoring and technical reviews

Contract and working arrangements

Contract duration: 4 years, extendable to indefinite.

Working arrangements: ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands.

Hiring unit: Resilience Initiative Implementation Management Office (RNC-RI), Directorate of Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity.

Position details

Reference

1434836233

Last Verified

15 September 2026

Position overview

This is the official EU Careers listing for Phoenix Study Manager at ESA based in Noordwijk (Other). The vacancy reference is 1434836233.

Job Requisition ID:20881

Date Posted:9 September 2026

Closing Date:30 September 2026 23:59 CET/CEST

Publication:Internal & External

Type of Appointment (learn more):4 years, extendable to indefinite

Directorate:Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity

Location

ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands

Description

Phoenix Mission Study Manager for the Phoenix Phase B1/B2 Project within the Resilience Initiative Implementation Management Office (RNC-RI), Directorate of Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity.

The Phoenix Phase B1/B2 activities are intended to consolidate the mission and system requirements, concept of operations, technical architecture and preliminary design, and to establish the technical and programmatic baseline needed for decisions on the subsequent implementation phase.

Reporting to the Head of the Resilience Initiative Implementation Management Office, you will be responsible for planning, coordinating and executing the Phoenix Phase B1/B2 study activities and for ensuring the technical coherence, quality and timely delivery of all study outputs. You will act as the principal ESA interface with the industrial consortium for the study and will functionally coordinate contributions from system engineering, telecommunications, security, ground segment, operations, product assurance and safety, procurement and project control.

You will work closely with the Lead System Manager, Product Assurance and Safety Manager, Procurement Officer, Directorate project control staff and specialist engineers from the Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality and the Directorate of Operations. You will also interface with participating Member States, institutional stakeholders, industry and prospective users or operators. The role involves the functional coordination of a multidisciplinary team but does not entail line management responsibilities.

Duties

Your tasks and responsibilities will include:

- planning and managing the Phoenix Phase B1/B2 industrial and internal study activities through the agreed reviews and decision gates; - establishing and maintaining the integrated study plan, including the scope, deliverables, milestones, interfaces, resources, schedule, cost and risk baseline; - coordinating the consolidation of mission objectives, stakeholder and user needs, mission requirements and derived system requirements, ensuring appropriate traceability; - leading the assessment and maturation of reference mission scenarios, concepts of operations, system architectures, design drivers, trade-offs, performance indicators, system budgets and internal and external interfaces; - ensuring the end-to-end technical coherence of the proposed system across its space, ground, user, service, operations and security elements; - preparing the technical elements of procurement documentation for the industrial study activities and supporting proposal evaluations and negotiations in close cooperation with the Procurement Officer; - monitoring industrial technical performance and ensuring the completeness, quality and timely delivery of the contractual study outputs; - leading the preparation and conduct of mission- and system-level study reviews, ensuring the timely closure of actions and confirming readiness for the subsequent phase; - coordinating the tailoring and application of relevant ECSS, ESA, international and industry standards, including product assurance and safety, security and space sustainability requirements; - monitoring the overall study schedule, cost and risks, identifying problem areas and ensuring that appropriate mitigation measures are implemented; - identifying and coordinating the specialist engineering support required from the Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality and the Directorate of Operations; - maintaining effective interfaces with participating Member States, institutional stakeholders, industry and prospective customers or operators, and providing regular progress reporting; - preparing the technical and programmatic documentation required to support decisions on the implementation phase and ensuring an orderly handover of the approved baseline; - supporting other RNC-RI activities within your field of competence, as required.

Technical competencies

Experience in early-phase telecommunications mission and system studies, preferably covering Phase A, B1 and/or B2

Multi-disciplinary knowledge of end-to-end satellite communication systems, including space, ground, user, service, operations and security elements

Experience in requirements engineering, concept-of-operations definition, system architecture, trade-off analysis and management of system budgets and interfaces

Experience in initiating and managing industrial studies, including technical procurement documentation, negotiations, contract monitoring and technical reviews

Knowledge of project planning, industrial cost and schedule control, risk management and management of technical deliverables

Knowledge of ECSS, product assurance and safety, security and space sustainability processes applicable to preparatory project phases

Behavioural competencies

Education and professional experience

A master’s degree in a relevant engineering discipline is required for this post, together with four years of relevant professional experience. Alternatively, candidates with a bachelor’s degree, complemented by an additional four years of relevant professional experience, may be considered.

Additional requirements

- experience in managing or technically coordinating complex industrial mission or system studies; - the ability to coordinate multidisciplinary teams without hierarchical authority and to work effectively with Member States, institutional stakeholders and industry.

The following will be considered assets:

- experience in telecommunications or secure connectivity missions at system level; - direct experience of working with a commercial telecommunications prime contractor and/or operator; - experience with ESA procurement processes, including statements of work, tender evaluations, negotiations and contract follow-up.

Experience in Phase A, B1 and/or B2 activities and in preparing a mission or system for an implementation decision is highly desirable.

Experience in later implementation phases may be considered an advantage where it supports sound preparatory-phase decisions.

Application timeline

This vacancy was first listed on 9 September 2026, 6 days ago.

The application deadline is 30 September 2026, 13 days from today. Late applications are not accepted, so submit through the official EU Careers portal well in advance.

Last verified against the EU Careers feed on 15 September 2026.

Where to learn more

For headcount, mission, and other open vacancies at ESA see the ESA institution page; for the cost of living, correction coefficient, and other postings in Noordwijk see our Noordwijk location page.

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