Product Assurance and Safety Manager

European Space Agency - ESA; Noordwijk; On-site; EUR 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

European Space Agency – ESA is seeking a Product Assurance and Safety Manager for Noordwijk, NL. The role supports the RNC PA&S section, coordinating project PA&S activities from design reviews to launch readiness.

The candidate will ensure compliance with ESA PA&S policy, lead safety analyses, and engage with partners across space telecommunications projects, including SAGA. A Master’s in engineering with eight years’ experience is required, plus eligibility for security clearance.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in an engineering discipline with eight years of relevant experience.
• Significant PA&S management experience on space telecommunications or New Space projects.
• Eligibility for security clearance and export control access.

Responsibilities

• Define and monitor general and project PA&S requirements in line with ESA policy and PA&S baselines.
• Review contractor PA&S plans, specifications and effort for the project PA&S programme.
• Guide and monitor PA&S implementation by contractors, including design and safety reviews.
• Plan, coordinate and monitor PA&S support for project teams.
• Represent ESA on reviews and determine disposition of non-conformances and anomalies.
• Oversee selection/procurement of electrical, electronic and mechanical parts and ensure software PA requirements.
• Provide PA&S support during launch, integration, verification and operation activities.
• Contribute to lessons learned and to the quality management system; support security activities.

Skills

Product assurance

Quality management

Safety management

PA&S baselines

Space standards

Education

Master's degree in engineering

Job description

Product Assurance and Safety Manager

Closing Date: 11 November 2026 23:59 CET/CEST

Type of Appointment: 4 years, extendable to indefinite

Directorate: Technology, Engineering and Quality

Grade Band: A2 - A4

Workplace: Noordwijk, NL

Location

ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands

Description

You will be assigned to the Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity (RNC) Product Assurance and Safety Section, Product Assurance Management Division, Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality. You will work as Product Assurance and Safety (PA&S) Manager to support projects in the Directorate of Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity. Under the coordination of the RNC Connectivity Team Lead, you will report hierarchically to the Head of the RNC Product Assurance and Safety Section and functionally to the project manager(s) of the project(s) you are assigned to. You will initially be assigned to support the SAGA project. For the maintenance of professional standards, the implementation of ESA’s general Product Assurance and Safety policy and contributions to corporate tasks, such as reviews, standardisation, alerts and lessons learned, you will report to the Head of the Quality Department through PA&S line management.

Duties

• defining or supporting the definition of general and project-specific programmatic and technical requirements in compliance with the applicable product assurance and safety requirements, the RNC PA&S approach and ESA PA&S policy. RNC projects may involve public-private partnerships between ESA and the private sector, requiring the ability to engage with partners in accordance with ESA’s specific role;
• reviewing contractors’ plans, specifications and effort proposed for the execution of the project PA&S programme;
• guiding and monitoring the implementation of PA&S requirements by contractors in order to assess performance and effectiveness, participating in design and safety reviews and directing the necessary preventive or corrective actions;
• planning, coordinating and monitoring any PA&S support for the project team;
• representing ESA on boards established to conduct reviews, such as failure reviews and test reviews, and to determine the disposition of non-conformances and anomalies;
• guiding and monitoring the selection and procurement of electrical, electronic and electromechanical parts, materials and processes and controlling implementation of applicable requirements;
• ensuring the implementation of software PA requirements;
• ensuring the preparation of design trade-offs, analyses and reports using reliability, availability, maintainability and safety data to support project decisions;
• monitoring manufacturing, integration and test activities through quality assurance audits, mandatory and key inspection points, test witnessing and configuration inspections;
• supporting the definition of acceptance requirements, as necessary, and participating in acceptance reviews of contractually deliverable items;
• reviewing contractors’ PA&S analyses and safety data packages, ensuring that they are available by the planned dates to support safety review schedules, in coordination with the relevant safety authorities;
• providing PA&S support for project assembly, integration and verification activities;
• providing PA&S support during launch, validation, operation and service activities, as relevant. This may involve participation in launch campaigns;
• supporting the identification and management of lessons learned and contributing to the quality management system as required;
• supporting security activities as needed.

In the execution of these tasks, you will be supported by experts from the ESA Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality or service contractors.

Technical competencies

• Knowledge of product assurance, quality assurance, and safety and quality management
• Experience in the management and monitoring of industrial activities, including participation in reviews
• Experience with the definition and application of product assurance and safety requirements baselines, tools and methods
• Experience in the PA&S technical domains covered by the position
• Experience with space and commercial quality standards and their implementation

Behavioural competencies

• Result Orientation
• Operational Efficiency
• Fostering Cooperation
• Relationship Management
• Continuous Improvement
• Forward Thinking

For more information, please refer to the ESA Core Behavioural Competencies guidebook.

Education And Professional Experience

A master’s degree in an engineering discipline is required for this post together with, in principle, eight years of relevant professional experience in product assurance and safety.

Additional Requirements

Significant experience as a PA&S Manager on space telecommunications or New Space projects is considered an important asset, particularly where this has involved working with institutional partners, industry and/or telecommunications operators and applying ECSS, other industrial and commercial standards, and Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) products.

Eligibility for security clearance and access to export control-related information.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusiveness

ESA is an equal opportunity employer, committed to achieving diversity within the workforce and creating an inclusive working environment. We therefore welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religious beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics.

At the Agency we value diversity, and we welcome people with disabilities. Whenever possible, we seek to accommodate individuals with disabilities by providing the necessary support at the workplace. The Human Resources Department can also provide assistance during the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact us via email at [e-mail].

Important Information and Disclaimer

In principle, recruitment will be within the advertised grade band (A2-A4). However, if the selected candidate has less than four years of relevant professional experience following the completion of the master’s degree, the position may be filled at A1 level.

Applicants must be eligible to access information, technology, and hardware which is subject to European or US export control and sanctions regulations & eligible to acquire the security clearance by their national security administrations.

During the recruitment process, the Agency may request applicants to undergo selection tests. Additionally, successful candidates will need to undergo basic screening before appointment, which will be conducted by an external background screening service, in compliance with the European Space Agency's security procedures.

Note that ESA is in the process of transitioning to a Matrix setup, which could lead to organisational changes affecting this position.

The information published on ESA’s careers website regarding working conditions is correct at the time of publication. It is not intended to be exhaustive and may not address all questions you would have.

Nationality and Languages

Please note that applications are only considered from nationals of one of the following States: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Canada, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia.

According to the ESA Convention, staff shall be recruited on the basis of their qualifications, taking into account an adequate distribution of posts among nationals of the Member States.

The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.