In her role as SVP MEO (Medium Earth Orbit) Constellation Programs, Carmel Ortiz is helping satellite giant SES navigate the transformation required for designing, building and operating its systems. “Historically, satellite systems were bespoke, highly optimised, and designed over many years,” she explains. “Today, the market demands agility, iteration, software-driven architectures, and faster innovation cycles.”
Having recently arrived in Luxembourg, Ortiz worked for Intelsat in the U.S. until the company was acquired by SES in July 2025. She entered the satellite industry over 30 years ago and calls it a “close-knit network”, and one in which it’s easy to get “hooked” to the work. One of the things she most enjoys about the sector is how audacious ideas can realistically take shape through creativity.
Since studying electrical engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology (she was one of 10 women in a graduating class of 110), she’s had several career transitions, always with two “consistent threads: systems engineering and space-based technologies.” This trajectory included co-founding a consulting company and joining OneWeb in its startup phase. Though OneWeb went bankrupt in 2020, the experience for her was “incredibly formative”and “reinforced the importance of resilience, adaptability, and maintaining perspective during uncertainty.”
Asking for guidance, feedback, and support is actually a strength, not a weakness.
Her role at SES provides “the opportunity to bring together the different phases of my career in a meaningful way. The goal is to apply the technical rigour of systems engineering, the adaptability and speed of startup culture, and the strategic perspective needed to help a long-established company reinvent itself during a period of industry disruption.” She’s also helping to shape meoSphere, SES’ next-generation MEO satellite constellation.
Over time, Ortiz has learned that “asking for guidance, feedback, and support is actually a strength, not a weakness.” She’d advise the next generation of professionals to “read constantly and stay curious… reading broadly helps you connect ideas, understand different perspectives, and think more strategically.”
This exclusive portrait was published in the 10th edition of Forbes Luxembourg.
Read more articles:
Dare To Be. Dare To Be Unstoppable.
Yuriko Backes: Championing Equality While Shaping Luxembourg’s Future
Marie-Hélène Massard: Leading With Purpose In A Time Of Transformation
