Contract Manager

Here at The Exploration Company, we are building spacecrafts for humanity.

About the role

The Exploration Company builds complex space systems under contracts with government and institutional customers. Programs of this kind evolve: requirements change, design maturity improves, schedules shift, and suppliers and customers request adjustments. Each change must be formally proposed, assessed, negotiated, and recorded in the contract before it can be executed and paid for.

As Contract Manager, you will own the change lifecycle for your assigned contracts. You will drive Contract Change Notices (CCNs) from initial request to signature, protect the company's position on scope, cost, and schedule, and keep the contract baseline accurate for the program team.

Key responsibilities

• Own the CCN lifecycle from receipt or initiation through impact assessment, negotiation, approval, and formal issue, with clear ownership and deadlines for every open item.

• Define a process to identifying extra effort from the team which could be characterized into a CCN request to the customer, and all the steps until CCN nego and signature

• Chase and track open CCNs with customer contracting officers, program managers, and internal stakeholders, and escalate delays that threaten schedule or cash flow.

• Coordinate impact assessments with engineering, quality, supply chain, and finance, covering technical scope, cost, schedule, risk, and compliance effects.

• Prepare and negotiate change proposals, including pricing justification, supporting documentation, and changes to terms and conditions.

• Maintain the contract baseline by recording each approved CCN in the contract register and ensuring the scope, price, milestones, and deliverables reflect the current agreed position.

• Monitor entitlement and notice obligations, including time limits for submitting change requests and claims under the contract and applicable procurement rules.

• Manage the CCN register and reporting, providing regular status updates on open, pending, and approved changes, value at stake, and aging to program leadership.

• Support invoicing and revenue recognition by ensuring approved changes are reflected in billing milestones and Odoo or ERP records.

• Ensure compliance with the contract's terms, applicable public procurement and export-control rules, and internal approval and delegation-of-authority policies.

• Prepare for audits and reviews by maintaining a complete, traceable record of change decisions and correspondence.

 

What we would love to see from you

In the role of Contract Manager, ideally, you will have the following:

• 5+ years of B2G experience (sales, procurement or contract management), ideally in aerospace, space, defence industries

• An understanding of complex contracts with Institutions like ESA, EU, Space agencies and ability to propose solution preserving company's interest and add value to the customer.

• Strong negotiation, presentation, and proposal-writing skills

• Fluency in English; additional fluency in German, French, or Italian is a strong advantage, depending on your location

• Experience either as Contract manager in space company or as Contract officer in institution like ESA is welcome

Why you should join us!

What makes us special here at The Exploration Company and why we think you will enjoy working here is:  

• We’re Agile - we make decisions fast whilst keeping our goals and systems in mind 

• We’re Open and Collaborative - we are transparent about risks and obstacles, so that we can cooperate to overcome them  

• We have a lot of Fun - we refuel our energy knowing we are democratising space. It’s a wonderful and rare opportunity, are YOU up for the challenge?  

We'd love to hear from you if you wish to be a part of our journey. Please submit your CV now for immediate consideration and we will be in touch shortly. 
 
The Exploration Company is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability status. Relocation assistance is provided for those willing to relocate including visa sponsorship where applicable.  


All offers are contingent upon the successful completion of a background check, which will be subject to the country, role, and project you applied for. By submitting your application, you acknowledge and agree that any offer of employment may be conditional upon successful condition of this check. The Exploration Company partners with Zinc Work Limited located in the UK (Zinc), a third-party provider, to ensure this process as efficient and transparent as possible.

If applicable, you will receive an email from Zinc upon acceptance of your offer with a link to a secure portal where you can provide the required information to Zinc.