Deputy Programme Manager

ALTEN; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private Medical Insurance

Cycle & Tech Scheme

Employee assistance programme

Life Insurance & Pension Scheme

Social atmosphere, team buildings

Flexible working (role dependent)

Armed Forces Covenant support

Career development opportunities

Job summary

ALTEN is seeking a Deputy Program Manager in London to support a major spacecraft mission from design through integration and readiness. You will partner with the Program Manager to coordinate technical, schedule, and delivery activities across engineering teams, ensuring timely progress and high-reliability standards.

You will manage budgets, risks, and stakeholder communications while facilitating reviews and ensuring documentation is complete for mission readiness.

Qualifications

• Space industry experience with spacecraft programmes or mission-critical space projects.
• Experience coordinating engineering activities within complex programmes.
• Understanding of spacecraft development lifecycles (design, integration, testing).
• Strong schedule management, milestone tracking, and cross-team coordination.
• Experience in risk management, issue tracking, and mitigation planning.
• Ability to interpret technical documentation and communicate with engineering leads.
• Excellent organisational and communication skills for multiple workstreams.
• Experience supporting programme reviews and reporting to senior stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end programme delivery for a complex spacecraft mission with the PM.
• Coordinate cross-functional engineering teams to maintain programme alignment.
• Manage schedules, milestones, dependencies, and critical paths.
• Oversee risk management and mitigation strategies with engineering leads.
• Support budget tracking, resource planning, and reporting.
• Facilitate technical reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR) and ensure documentation readiness.
• Maintain stakeholder updates on progress, risks, and actions.
• Ensure compliance with high-reliability space standards and mission constraints.
• Support configuration control and change-management processes.
• Collaborate with AIT and operations for smooth transitions to testing phases.
• Drive continuous improvement in processes and communication flows.
• Coordinate contract management and external partner communication as needed.

Skills

Space industry experience

Program management

Schedule management

Cross-functional coordination

Risk management

Stakeholder communication

Technical documentation

Team leadership

Quality & standards

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Engineering

Job description

• Clearance: Clearable

ALTEN is a global engineering and technology consultancy operating across over 35 countries worldwide. We partner with industry leaders across sectors including Aeronautics, Aerospace, Defence, Naval, Automotive, Energy, Rail, IT and many more to deliver innovative engineering solutions that drive technological advancement & support sustainable transformation.

Our teams of passionate and agile engineers work on cutting-edge projects that shape the future of technology and sustainability. At ALTEN, we empower talented engineers to innovate, solve complex challenges, and deliver impactful solutions that build tomorrow's world-today.

Join us and start building tomorrow's world today!

Job Description

Seeking an experienced Deputy Program Manager to join our team in London to support the delivery of a major spacecraft mission within the space sector. You will work closely with the Program Manager to coordinate technical, schedule, and delivery activities across multiple engineering teams, ensuring the programme progresses smoothly from design through integration, testing, and final mission readiness.

• Location: London
• On Site: 1-2X a month
• Clearance: Clearable
• Experience Level: Mid Level - Senior

Key Responsibilities

• Support the Program Manager in leading the end-to-end programme delivery for a complex spacecraft mission.
• Coordinate cross-functional engineering teams (systems, electrical, mechanical, RF, AIT, software, payload) to maintain programme alignment.
• Manage programme schedules, milestones, dependencies, and critical paths, ensuring timely progress across all work packages.
• Oversee risk management, identifying issues early and driving mitigation strategies with engineering leads.
• Support budget tracking, resource planning, and reporting activities across the programme.
• Facilitate technical reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR), ensuring teams are prepared and documentation is complete.
• Maintain strong stakeholder communication, providing clear updates on progress, risks, and actions.
• Ensure programme activities comply with high-reliability space standards, quality requirements, and mission constraints.
• Support configuration control, ensuring changes are properly assessed, approved, and documented.
• Work closely with AIT and operations teams to ensure smooth transitions into integration, testing, and mission readiness phases.
• Drive continuous improvement in programme processes, communication flows, and delivery efficiency.

Qualifications

Required Skills

• Mandatory Space industry experience — direct involvement in spacecraft programmes, satellite development, or mission-critical space projects.
• Proven experience coordinating engineering activities within complex technical programmes.
• Strong understanding of spacecraft development lifecycles (design, integration, testing, verification).
• Skilled in schedule management, milestone tracking, and cross-team coordination.
• Experience with risk management, issue tracking, and mitigation planning.
• Ability to interpret technical documentation and communicate effectively with engineering leads.
• Strong organisational and communication skills, with the ability to manage multiple parallel workstreams.
• Experience supporting programme reviews and reporting to senior stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Engineering, or equivalent military experience.

Desirable Skills

• Familiarity with ECSS or similar space-industry standards.
• Experience with configuration management and change-control processes.
• Exposure to spacecraft AIT workflows and programme-level test campaign planning.
• Understanding of mission operations preparation and launch-site coordination.
• Experience with project management tools and methodologies.
• Ability to support contract management, supplier coordination, and external partner communication.

Additional Information

Why join us

We bring together entrepreneurial, tech-driven people to deliver innovative solutions for leading companies.

At ALTEN, you'll work on exciting projects, supported by ongoing learning, mentoring, and clear career development tailored to your goals.

Join a passionate team and help build tomorrow, today.

In short you get

• A personalised career path and a rewarding management style
• A huge diversity of engineering projects and industries
• Private Medical Insurance
• Cycle & Tech Scheme
• Employee assistance programme
• Life insurance & Pension Scheme
• Social atmosphere, regular gatherings & team buildings
• Flexible way of working (role dependent)

We are proud to support the Armed Forces Covenant & actively encourage applications from members of the Armed Forces community, including veterans, reservists, service leavers, and military spouses/partners. We recognise the value of military skills and experience and are committed to ensuring that no applicant is unfairly disadvantaged during our recruitment and selection processes.

ALTEN is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace and values the strength that comes from a global mix of backgrounds and perspectives. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates, regardless of background or protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know.

This role may require you to have or be willing to go through Security Clearance. As part of the onboarding process candidates will be asked to complete a Baseline Personnel Security Standard; details of the evidence required to apply may be found on the government website Gov.UK. If you are unable to meet this and any associated criteria, then your employment may be delayed, or rejected. Details of this will be discussed with you at interview.