Interview with Marie Touveneau
Marie Touveneau, IVV Manager, studied aerospace engineering. Originally, she was interested in the science of the universe and wanted to be an astrophysicist. But then she was also very thrilled by rocket launches and space exploration, and finally took that road.
Before joining Rivada Space Networks, Marie worked at Airbus, OHB and ESA. She was planning to move to Berlin when she heard about Rivada Space Networks via a contact on LinkedIn. This was the perfect opportunity for her to combine her dream job with her dream city.
IVV Manager,
Program Team
What's the best thing
about your job as an IVV Manager?
The best thing about being an IVV / AIT engineer is that you have to understand the theory in order to understand the practice. You need to learn and know how the system or satellites work so that you can later test them and solve the numerous problems that arise during testing. I like the combination of theory, design and operations. When you look at a satellite or a space system from both a theoretical and a practical point of view, you get a more comprehensive understanding of it.
What do you like about working in a smaller company?
When I worked at OHB, Airbus or ESA, I never really paid attention to the bigger picture e.g. political decisions or partnerships between companies. I just focused on my tasks as an engineer. Now, thanks to our weekly All-hands calls, I not only learn on a regular basis in this area and find out what's happening in the industry in general, but I can also see how much it affects my work as an engineer. I also gain a lot of insight into the other departments and their strategy.
What contribution would you make to a Rivada party?
I grew up in a family where wine is important. My father is a wine taster (oenologue) and my godfather is a winemaker just like my grandfather. During my time at university, I organized events for the wine club. I am the right person when it comes to doing an almost professional wine tasting with the team.
I could also be the DJ - provided that the colleagues like to listen to techno.