ESA Commercialisation: from ideas to business success

To boost commercialisation in the European space sector, ESA and its partners are focusing on three key factors: talent, access to capital and fast innovation.

ESA’s Directorate of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness (previously Commercialisation, Industry and Procurement) works with all directorates at ESA to help deliver new commercialisation opportunities in European space, thereby increasing the competitiveness of Europe’s space economy and bringing socio-economic benefits to European citizens.

This month, our guest interviewee is Géraldine Naja, Director of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness at ESA, who tells us more about ESA’s commercialisation endeavours.

Can you tell us more about your role as Director of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness at ESA?

My directorate is focused on industry, supporting its competitiveness and fostering commercialisation and innovation in the European space sector. My team is composed of four departments: Industrial Policy and Audits, Contracts, Commercialisation Services, and Applications and Solutions. As Director, I seek to manage efficiently and effectively these four departments, bringing together some 320 people, to maximise the synergies amongst them and to ensure that they can evolve according to the new global space context. While industrial policy and contracts are central to ESA’s functioning, they need to become more agile and ever more efficient to enable ESA to play its part in setting up a “European NewSpace”. In parallel, the two more recent functions of boosting commercialisation and providing space-based solutions for business applications will need to rely on new procurement and industrial policy tools.

We must help new European space entities and start-ups grow; we must support our established industrial partners’ competitiveness on global markets; we must welcome new Associate and Member States and make sure that their industry can level-up to the demanding space standards. These are examples of our role as a corporate directorate supporting all ESA programmes and all space industrial actors in Europe.

At ESA, no two days are the same. One day, I will be providing a keynote on Europe and NewSpace at a conference and the next, I will be meeting with promising European start-ups, followed by a meeting with Member States’ representatives. As you can see, a challenging and very exciting position!

Can you please tell us more about your career path and what brought you to ESA?

I am an engineer with a specialisation in rocket engines and a Master’s in political sciences. I wanted to work in space from the outset and I was very much interested in international relations and geopolitics. After my studies and an internship in a research organisation for aeronautics and space (ONERA), I applied to ESA for a position as payload operations engineer in the Columbus programme, Europe’s contribution to the (then future) International Space Station, where I worked for five years. I then held numerous positions and functions within ESA: in strategy and foresight, in assessing the use of space for monitoring natural disasters – which led to the International Charter on Space and Disasters – and in setting up the first cooperation with the European Commission. I was seconded in 2003 to the French Ministry for Research and Higher Education, where I was in charge of strategy and foresight in the Minister’s Cabinet. I returned to ESA in 2005 as the Head of EU Relations in the Director General’s Cabinet, including cooperation with the European Defence Agency. These were the years when we set up and implemented the Framework Agreement between ESA and the EU and started the joint Galileo and Copernicus programmes. In late 2013, I joined the Launchers’ Directorate as Senior Advisor to the Director, in view of the preparation of the decision on Ariane 6 end 2014. I then became Head of the Industrial Policy and Audits Department in 2015 and was nominated Director of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness in October 2021.

Considering your extensive experience at the Agency, how do you perceive its evolution and how do you see ESA’s role in the future of European space commercialisation?

The Agency has considerably evolved over the last three decades: many more Member States – from 12 when I joined to 22 now, plus four Associate States and one Cooperating State; many more partnerships with international partners, national agencies, industry and operators – most of our programmes today involve one or several partnerships; and a much wider scope of activities. In fact, ESA now covers all sectors of space activities, from science to applications, from exploration to launchers, and from advanced technology development to close-to-market projects.

I see ESA’s role in European space commercialisation as having three main parts: that of an enabler, as ESA supports new actors from incubation to scaling-up, with seed funding, technical and business advice and access to private funding, inter alia; that of a partner, supporting technically and financially the development and implementation of projects that are of interest to our programmes; and that of a customer, be it as first or anchor customer, securing an initial demand and integrating commercially-available systems or services into future space infrastructure.

What are the main challenges that your teams are currently facing?

First, we need to evolve the mindset and processes at ESA to make it a more responsive, agile and business-oriented organisation in the context of “NewSpace” and it is always challenging to change the way of working, especially after decades of continued success. Second, we must reach out to non-space sectors, making them aware of the benefits and solutions that space-based systems and data can bring to them, for instance in energy, health or automotive sectors. Third, in the commercialisation and digitalisation efforts that we are doing within ESA, we must also ensure that our Agency is behaving in a responsible manner with respect to the green transition and to environmental and societal goals. Finally, we must rejuvenate ESA, taking advantage of the upcoming retirement wave (many of us were recruited in the late 80s or early 90s), also with the goal of a more diverse Agency in all respects.

In which domains are you looking to hire, now and in the future? Which skills do you foresee being essential?

ESA needs a very wide variety of skills, from the obvious technical engineering skills to contract officers, legal skills, auditors and international diplomacy. However, being first and foremost a technical organisation, the majority of opportunities are in engineering and project management fields. We also look for people coming from industry or with a business understanding in addition to their technical skills. That said, pure technical skills are insufficient in an international organisation such as ESA. Fluency in English is essential and additional language skills are a strong benefit, but this international nature makes soft skills such as clear communication between people of different backgrounds just as important. Problem solving is also a core part of the Agency’s work and in highly stressful situations such as when issues occur after the launch of a satellite, communication skills and the ability to work in a team becomes even more critical. Finally, I would say that in the current fast-evolving context of space worldwide, an ability and willingness to always be learning and adapting is key in all areas of ESA’s work.

What advice do you have for potential candidates who are interested in joining your teams?

My first advice would be to apply! We are currently in a recruitment wave at ESA and there are many open opportunities, for engineers of course but also lawyers, economists or people with financial backgrounds, as mentioned above. As the communication slogan perfectly puts it, ‘’ESA recruits – and not only astronauts’’. We also have dedicated internships and programmes for Young Graduates and Junior Professionals, enabling them to get a first ‘’entry-level’’ ESA experience.

Regardless of the position, my second piece of advice would be to prepare for applications and interviews upfront. The ESA website and the Commercialisation Gateway provide plenty of relevant information to get started. Reaching out to existing ESA staff can also provide a big boost in understanding life and work at ESA.

Thirdly, working for ESA may require changing the country in which you live. This can provide a significant number of opportunities for growth but can also put a strain on family life – so be sure your loved ones are on board and supportive. ?

Last but by no means least, be ready to join a diverse, international and enthusiastic team. Working in such an environment can be both challenging and intensely rewarding, allowing for an unparalleled world view to anyone who accepts the challenge.

What is your most memorable moment at the Agency?

That’s a tough one! There are so many… Please allow me to select two. First, the awakening of the Rosetta orbiter in January 2014, reaching its target comet after 10 years of interplanetary travel, and the landing of its small Philae orbiter on the comet in November 2014, a world premiere and probably the finest success so far of ESA – what an incredible mission and emotional moment for all of us! On a more personal level, my election as Director in October 2021 and the very joyful celebration with my team afterwards, because I saw it as the recognition of the work we had done together on industrial policy over the previous six years. Space is mostly a human adventure and these moments of common rejoicing with my colleagues will remain with me forever.

In March, we announced that 2023 would see the publication of over 300 vacancies at ESA. New vacancies keep being published as we continue our search for talented and motivated professionals to join our teams across Europe and support our mission of the peaceful exploration of space for the benefit of everyone. Could ESA be the next step in your career? Read more here to find out!

Space awaits you!