SSPI announces inaugural “20 Under 35” list of future leaders to watch

The Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) has announced the first annual “20 Under 35” list of outstanding young professionals under the age of 35. The announcement was made at SSPI’s Future Leaders Dinner last night at Satellite Innovation 2018 in Mountain View, California.

SSPI’s annual list of "20 Under 35" features 20 employees and entrepreneurs to keep your eye on in coming years. They were selected from nominations submitted by the membership and evaluated by the same panel of judges who name winners of the Promise Awards. They represent, quite simply, the best of us in the years ahead.

“The young executives on our 20 Under 35 list work for both established leaders and daring innovators in the industry,” said SSPI executive director Robert Bell. “They come from many different nations and different disciplines. What they have in common is a track record of achievement that is remarkable for people in the first decade of their careers, and a commitment to excellence second to none.”

The 20 Under 35 of 2018 are:

• Jillian Gorsuch, Additive Manufacturing Technology Manager, SSL (2018 Promise Award Recipient)

• Theodore McDonald, Raptor Test, SpaceX (2018 Promise Award Recipient)

• Mike Safyan, VP, Launch, Planet (2018 Promise Award Recipient)

• Ali Akhtar, Head of Commercial Satellite Services, Supernet

• Raoul le Boucher d’Herouville, Lead Manager, Industrialization & Production, OneWeb Satellites

• Zack Downey, Data Scientist, Ursa Space Systems

• Joanna Estrada Schutz, Corporate Culture and Customer Experience Senior Manager, Elara Comunicaciones

• Phil Hahn, Engineer, Blue Origin

• Arlen Kam, Flight Dynamics Mission Analyst, OneWeb

• Jeff Kendall, Manager, Space Power and Control Electronics, SSL

• Jess Koloini, F-16 Program Manager, Middle East & North Africa, Lockheed Martin

• Valvanera Moreno, Spacecraft Program Manager, SES

• Marvin Salas Véjar, Infrastructure Manager, Elara Comunicaciones

• Peter Schimitsch, Manager, Systems Engineering, Globecomm

• Emily Schubert, Payload Systems Engineer, The Boeing Company

• JP Sheehan, Senior Mission Systems Engineer, OneWeb

• Cate van Oppen, Manager, Strategic Partnerships, Kymeta

• Krystal Wilson, Director of Space Applications Programs, Secure World Foundation

• Lindsay Wolff, Project Manager and Systems Engineer, GEOshare (subsidiary of Lockheed Martin)

• Adam Yozwiak, Manager, Space Subsystems Engineering, OneWeb