CONOPs and Analysis System Engineer

Building the space between proven and possible, MDA Space is a trusted mission partner to the global space industry. A robotics, satellite systems and geointelligence pioneer with a 55‑year+ story of world firsts and more than 450 missions, MDA Space is a global leader in communications satellites, Earth and space observation, and space exploration and infrastructure.

MDA is seeking a CONOPS and Mission Analysis System Engineer to own the definition, development and documentation of CONOPS, mission scenarios, operational concepts and quantitative mission analyses for current and next‑generation remote sensing and communications satellite missions. The engineer will work closely with customers, prime contractors and internal multidisciplinary teams to translate stakeholder needs into clear, traceable operational concepts that guide system architecture, requirements allocation, risk assessment and program planning.

• Gather functional, performance, environmental and security requirements from customer top level mission objectives.
• Conduct workshops, interviews and trade‑study sessions to capture explicit and implicit operational needs.

• Author the high‑level Concept of Operations document, defining mission phases (launch, EOR, commissioning, nominal operation), ground‑segment interactions, on‑orbit activities, contingency procedures and hand‑over processes.
• Produce supporting artefacts (scenario diagrams, activity flowcharts, timeline).

• Build quantitative mission analysis models (orbit propagation, coverage, link‑budget, resource utilization) using modeling tools such as SysML.
• Evaluate alternative architectures (orbit, constellation size, payload configurations) depending on performance, cost and risk metrics.

• Translate CONOPS outcomes into system‑level requirements and perform requirement management and maintain bidirectional traceability throughout the program lifecycle.

• Define and document interfaces between spacecraft, payload, ground‑segment and mission‑operations teams (ICDs, data‑flow diagrams).

• Document and communicate technical status, risk assessments and trade‑study results to senior management and/or customers or partners.
• Lead trade‑studies that assess spacecraft bus, payload, launch‑vehicle and ground segment options.
• Support B&P (Phase 0 & pre-phase
  
  A).

• Develop verification plans, test matrices, test scripts and validation procedures to ensure operational readiness.

• Mentor, guide junior engineers and interns.
• Act as technical liaison with customers, partners and external vendors.
• Act as Continuous Improvement stakeholder.
• Contribute to MDA’s knowledge‑base, process enhancements, and standards development.

• Present CONOPS and mission analysis results at SRR, PDR, CDR, ORR.
• Ensure all artefacts, analysis, deliverables, software and documentation are version controlled in PLM.
• Support Technology Road‑Mapping & Innovation.

• Provide on‑going support to Mission Operations for health‑monitoring, contingency handling and performance trending.
• Update CONOPS and analysis models as the mission evolves (e.g., constellation expansion, new services).
• Analyze on‑orbit telemetry, update filter parameters, and generate performance reports.
• Support SOOH development and associated operator training.

• Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace or Physics with 10+ years of experience in LEO/MEO mission planning and operations.
• Strong understanding of space system engineering fundamentals, space environment and orbit mechanics.
• Hands‑on individual who can support systems integration processes and capability to test systems and resolve problems.
• Experience with Confluence and JIRA.
• Demonstrated capability to efficiently work with little supervision.
• Ability to distill complex problems to fundamentals to solve with analysis, similarity,…