I rarely write pieces that simply flag interesting job adverts. Most roles, even in government, are not strategically meaningful on their own. This one is different. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the home of the UK Space Agency, has released one of the strangest adverts I have seen in a long time.

So what is the job?

Yes, you read that correctly. DSIT wants to embed external subject matter experts directly into the department to support the National Technology Advisor, Dave Smith, and the Chief Scientific Advisor, Chris Johnson.

The brief is clear. These secondees will feed into live policy work, strategic assessments, and research projects that shape the United Kingdom’s science and technology agenda. You’d sit alongside ministers, senior civil servants, and the usual wide net of mysterious external stakeholders.

The targeted domains are the familiar government favourites. AI, robotics, cybersecurity, semiconductors, quantum, and the rest. However, one line stands out: Advanced Connectivity Technology and Telecoms. That phrase is doing a lot of heavy lifting. It does not explicitly say space, but anyone who works across telecoms, spectrum, orbital infrastructure, and military or civil satcom knows that ignoring space in connectivity policy is short-sighted.

Why the Space Sector Must Have a Seat at the Table

In my view, someone from the space sector needs to be embedded in DSIT. Not to cheerlead, but to bring reality, evidence, and forward-leaning strategy into the room. These senior advisors and ministers are shaping national capabilities that depend on space infrastructure whether they realise it or not. If space does not have a voice at the table, policy will drift towards a narrow, ground-based interpretation of connectivity and leave orbital systems as an afterthought.

[Terrestrial Telecoms Policy] ---> (Default State: Fiber, 5G Towers, Localized Mesh)
                                        |
       [Missing Link: Satellite Infrastructure, Spectrum Allocation, LEO Constellations]
                                        |
[Integrated Connectivity Policy] <-------+ (Target State: Full-Stack National Architecture)

This is a secondment opportunity, it is even part time, which means the person selected will likely remain employed and funded externally. This also means DSIT is explicitly trying to pull in expertise that government does not currently have in house. That is both telling and slightly concerning. It suggests a gap in their strategic coverage. It also creates a rare opening. If the right person steps into this, space finally gets someone positioned close to the decision-makers who shape national priorities.

Moving Beyond Committees and Consultations

A lot of people still think the space industry is just fancy rockets for billionaires. It is much more than that. From energy generation to disaster recovery and yes even ordering a pizza, space touches almost every part of modern life. It is a truly revolutionary industry.

I strongly believe that without someone deeply familiar with space in the room, policies and research will remain very, let’s say, terrestrial. Most industry engagement happens through committees, consultations or roundtables that rarely shift policy. A secondee embedded at this level actually shapes drafts before they reach ministers, giving them a degree of influence few outside experts ever enjoy. Policy agendas expand to match who is present, not who should be, and if someone from space does not take this opportunity, another domain will fill the slot.

In practical terms a space expert would:

  • Translate satellite realities into policy language.
  • Stress test assumptions.
  • Flag cost, risk and sovereignty issues.
  • Push for evidence over rhetoric.

It is not about lobbying for a sector but making sure decisions are grounded in reality.

The Reality of the Institutional Grid

Of course, the call has sparked healthy skepticism regarding how external expertise should interface with existing government bodies.

The Institutional Debate: Most technology areas referenced don’t have a dedicated department to promote them (AI, Robotics etc) but Space has an Agency. Leave them to get on with their role inside DSIT and for them to use “experts” as necessary. What we don’t need is double accounting. Space is not just a technology area, it’s a place!

Before technical consultants get too excited, be aware of the strict structures defining the vehicle:

“This secondment opportunity is only open to individuals who are directly employed by an organisation (e.g. a company, university, charity, or public body) and receive their salary through that employer. DSIT will reimburse salary costs to the employer, but secondees will remain on their home organisation’s payroll throughout the secondment. We are unable to accept applications from self-employed individuals, sole traders, or independent consultants.”

So they are primarily looking for secondments from academia or Large Scale Integrators (LSIs). All of whom have such incredible and redoubtable space heritage in their ranks! Remember DeloitteSat? Nope, neither do I…

Conclusion

One person will not transform UK science policy but they can stop bad decisions early, preventing expensive or strategically weak choices from taking root. That alone makes the role highly valuable and exactly the kind of rare opening that the space sector should not let slip by.

See the original civil service advert here: https://www.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/jobs.cgi?jcode=1976923

P.S. I painstakingly made a WW2 propaganda-style poster in Inkscape, then realised LinkedIn hates vertical images. Enjoy anyway.