Project Controller

Job description

Team & Reporting Line: Finance Team

Our Mission  

At constellr, we're harnessing the power of space to solve one of Earth’s greatest challenges: climate resilience & security in a changing world. Our thermal satellite constellation delivers the most accurate land surface temperature data on the market, equipping commercial players, governments, defence agencies, and global institutions with the thermal intelligence they need to make strategic decisions- from national security and infrastructure to agriculture and climate resilience. 

As a fast-scaling company with offices in Brussels, Freiburg, Munich, Washington and Toulouse, our multidisciplinary team of engineers, scientists, and strategists is building the future of space-based Earth observation

Your Role

As Project Controller, you will provide financial planning, visibility and control across constellr’s major projects, investments and externally funded activities. You will work at the intersection of Finance and Programme Management so that project economics, funding obligations and cash impact are visible early enough to act on.

This role is critical as constellr scales its satellite constellation, manages increasing CapEx and project complexity, and prepares for the next stage of growth. You will translate engineering and programme plans into forecasts management can actually decide on. You will also be the finance owner for grant and project compliance, accountable for spend that has to withstand funder and auditor scrutiny.

Key responsibilities

• Own the financial plan for constellr’s capital projects (satellite builds, payload development and ground installations), from budget and CapEx forecast through cost-to-complete, capitalization and cash impact.
• Run grants and institutional contracts after award, with grant managers and public funding teams: eligible-cost tracing, hourly rate submissions, grant income, funding claims and reporting packages, plus the documentation trail that survives audit.
• Build the financial case for grant and institutional proposals: cost and rate models, co-funding structure, and the cash and reporting commitments each submission creates.
• Feed project-level numbers into company-wide budgeting, forecasting and management reporting, and support the FP&A / Controlling team with analysis across departments.
• Give management early warning on cost overruns, schedule slippage and funding gaps, with a recommended course of action.
• Own the project controlling framework: cost-allocation rules, planning models, reporting templates and the tooling behind them.

Job requirements

About you  

Required:  

• 5+ years in project finance, controlling or FP&A, working hands-on with budgets, forecasts, actuals and commitments.
• Experience with grant or publicly funded programmes across the full cycle, from proposal budgeting and rate models through cost eligibility rules, funding claims, documentation and compliance.
• Ability to turn engineering and operational detail into financial insight non-finance stakeholders can act on.
• Strong Excel skills and confidence building and maintaining cost, rate and overhead models.
• Fluent English and German.

Nice to Have: 

• Experience in project-based, capital-intensive environments such as space, aerospace, defence, energy or infrastructure.
• Direct experience with EU, national or other space funding programmes, their reporting and compliance frameworks, and supporting grant or external audits.
• Experience with CapEx controlling, capitalization concepts or long-term project accounting.
• Experience with ERP, reporting or BI tools.

Why join constellr?

• High-Impact National Security Mission:  Be part of an ambitious mission to launch the world’s first commercial thermal infrared constellation, delivering sovereign-grade "behavioural" intelligence from space to close critical blind spots for defence, intelligence, and maritime surveillance agencies.
• Fast-Paced "New Space" Innovation:  Work at the leading edge of a rapidly evolving defence sector. By leveraging modern, agile New Space methodologies, you will help design, build, and deploy dual-use thermal payloads into operational orbit at a speed and scale that traditional aerospace models simply cannot match.
• Broad Interdisciplinary Exposure:  Accelerate your professional growth by collaborating daily with a diverse, international cohort of astrophysicists, software developers, and defence-system engineers.
• Inclusive & Scientific Culture:  Join a high-trust team deeply committed to diversity, inclusion, and scientific excellence, where academic curiosity is paired with high autonomy and a flat hierarchy.
• Financial Upside & Well-being:  Benefit from a Virtual Share Option Plan (VSOP) for permanent employees, giving you a true stake in the company's growth, alongside highly flexible hybrid working models.