Project Controller - European Space Agency

Octagon Professionals International; Noordwijk; On-site; EUR 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Up to 30 vacation days plus 12 ESA public holidays

Professional development budget

Annual gym membership

Job summary

Octagon Professionals International is looking for a Programme / Project Controller for the European Space Agency (ESA) in Noordwijk, The Netherlands. This role supports planning, execution, and monitoring of ESA projects.

Candidates should possess a Master’s degree and have experience in project control or financial management in the aerospace sector. The position offers a competitive remuneration package, vacation days, and professional development opportunities.

Qualifications

• Master's degree required.
• Experience in project control or financial control in aerospace/engineering.
• Strong understanding of project control and budget management.

Responsibilities

• Support planning, execution, monitoring, and reporting of ESA programmes.
• Develop and maintain programme schedules and resource forecasts.
• Monitor project performance and identify deviations.

Skills

Project control methodologies

Procurement processes

Budget management

Advanced Excel skills

Power BI reporting

Fluent English

Education

Master's degree in Engineering, Business Administration, or related field

Tools

MS Office

SAP (ECC/SRM)

Job description

Overview

Octagon Professionals is looking for a Programme / Project Controller to join our team supporting the European Space Agency (ESA) at ESTEC in Noordwijk, The Netherlands. If you are passionate about the space industry and enjoy working in an international, high-tech environment, we would love to hear from you.

Role Responsibilities

• Support the planning, execution, monitoring, and reporting of ESA programmes and projects.
• Develop and maintain programme schedules, work plans, procurement plans, and resource forecasts.
• Monitor project performance, identify deviations, and support corrective actions.
• Prepare management reports, KPIs, and programme performance overviews.
• Contribute to programme risk management activities.
• Support the preparation of long-, medium-, and short-term resource plans.
• Monitor budgets, manpower allocation, forecasts, and Cost-at-Completion (CaC).
• Review expenditures, commitments, and resource consumption for compliance with budgets and ESA procedures.
• Produce financial and resource-related reports and analyses.

Procurement & Contract Administration

• Support procurement activities, including tender preparation, evaluations, and contract follow-up.
• Assist with financial commitments, milestone payment plans, invoicing, and payment verification.
• Maintain procurement, contract, and financial data within ESA systems and local tools.
• Monitor procurement schedules, contract implementation, and financial performance.
• Support inventory management and export control activities.
• Maintain and update Industrial Return data and related reporting.
• Ensure consistency with ESA corporate policies and databases.
• Support the implementation and monitoring of industrial return objectives and compensation measures.
• Verify procurement activities align with programme industrial return targets.

Essential Skills and Experience

• Master's degree in Engineering, Business Administration, MBA, or a related field.
• Experience in project control, programme management, resource planning, or financial control within the aerospace or engineering sector.
• Strong understanding of project control methodologies, procurement processes, and budget management.
• Advanced Excel skills and proficiency with MS Office applications.
• Experience with SAP (ECC/SRM) and ESA corporate applications (e.g. ESA-p) is considered an asset.
• Knowledge of milestone payment plans, contract management, and resource forecasting.
• Experience with Power BI reporting is advantageous.
• Excellent command of English, both written and spoken; knowledge of another ESA language is a plus.
• Ability to quickly adapt to ESA processes, tools, and working environments.

Package

• Competitive remuneration package.
• Up to 30 vacation days plus 12 ESA public holidays (based on a 40-hour work week).
• Dedicated learning and development support, including training recommendations.
• Professional development budget and up to 5 additional development days annually.
• Tailor-made pension scheme with employer contribution.
• Annual membership to ESTEC gym and swimming facilities.
• Relocation support for candidates moving to the Netherlands.

Ready for this new challenge? Apply now and let’s get in touch!

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