SSPI Board of Directors Welcomes New Directors from Astroscale, Comtech, Globalstar, Hughes, KippsDeSanto & Co., Mynaric and Neuron

New York City, NY, USA – July 24, 2024 – After an election by the membership, the Board of Directors of Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) welcomes seven new Directors for three-year terms beginning July 1:

  • Kidsan Barnes, Senior Vice President, Maritime, Cruise & Ferry, Neuron
  • Leslie Blaker Glass, Vice President Strategic and Business Development, Hughes Defense Intelligence Systems Division
  • Cristi Damian, Vice President, Business Development, Comtech
  • Tim Deaver, Vice President, Global Sales and Solutions, Mynaric
  • Andrew Faiola, Commercial Vice President, Astroscale
  • Jamie Graham, Business Development, KippsDeSanto & Co.
  • Matt Grob, Chief Technology Officer, Globalstar

In addition, the election returned five Board members for a second term:

  • Julie Bettinger, Chief Marketing Officer, ST Engineering iDirect
  • Josef Bogosian, Vice President, Business Development, Commercial Satellites, Boeing
  • Marie-Pierre Pluvinage, Director, C4lSR & Secure Comms, Airbus U.S. Space & Defense, Inc.
  • James Trevelyan (SSPI Chair), Global Commercial Lead, Speedcast
  • Elias Zaccack, Executive Vice President, Global Sales, SES Networks

Having previously served as President, James Trevelyan, Global Commercial Lead at Speedcast has been appointed Chairman of SSPI, following the successful term of Chairwoman Katherine Gizinski, Chief Executive Officer of River Advisers. Jessica Beahn, Vice President and Chief Engineer at Maxar Space has been appointed by the Board as its next President.

“A quick review of these lists shows the diversity of the space and satellite industry as represented on SSPI’s Board of Directors,” said executive director Robert Bell. “It makes for a complex ecosystem but also a strong one that is adapting at speed to a changing market.”

Continuing in service on SSPI’s Board of Directors are:

  • Jessica Beahn (SSPI President), Vice President and Chief Engineer, Maxar Space
  • Aaron Lewis, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Government Relations, Arianespace, Inc.
  • Mike Safyan, Vice President of Launch & Strategic Initiatives, Planet

Tina Ghataore of Aerospacelab serves as SSPI-WISE Liaison. Elizabeth Evans of Clyde & Co. serves as General Council.
 

About SSPI

 

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Founded in 1983, Space & Satellite Professionals International (www.sspi.org) is on a mission to make the space and satellite industry one of the world’s best at attracting and engaging the talent that powers innovation. The space and satellite business has never seen a time of greater experimentation and disruption than we see today. Investment is the fuel for t

ransformation, but people are the engine. SSPI helps the industry attract, develop and retain the talented people it needs to keep the engine turning. People who connect through high-profile events and gain recognition from prestigious awards. People who rely on SSPI for a broader understanding of the industry as much as for individual networking and career mentoring. From young people seeking a career path to industry veterans with wisdom to share, SSPI connects them all.

Talent, investment and opportunity flow to industries that make a difference. SSPI is the only organization that also promotes the enormous value of space and satellite through dramatic stories of our technologies and companies making a better world. Those stories overturn misconceptions about the industry that hold it back. They inspire our people and attract new ones to the industry. They help justify investment and give new customers a reason to care about our services and products. Through the stories we tell and the people we serve, SSPI inspires the growth of the $1 trillion space economy of the future.