Space Machines

The Challenge: Scaling Without Breaking

Space Machines’ mission is clear: To safeguard space for everyone by making resilience inevitable, everywhere, always. But as they scaled, product development roadblocks emerged—stakeholder misalignment, resource constraints, and heavy reliance on key individuals led to technical debt, slowed innovation, and inefficiencies across teams.

They needed a solution that would streamline operations, foster collaboration, and set them up for long-term success without compromising agility or innovation.

Where Think & Grow Came In

We partnered with Space Machines to diagnose and resolve their key scaling challenges. Through a structured approach, we focused on:

• Stakeholder Engagement – Aligning leadership and technical teams to improve decision-making and execution.
• Resource Optimisation – Identifying gaps and ensuring key functions had the right talent and structure to support growth.
• Cultural Cohesion – Strengthening collaboration across departments to build a high-performance team.

Our growth workshop helped uncover underlying challenges and strategic opportunities. Off the back of this, we placed two critical hires:

• Head of Operations – To improve prioritisation, decision-making, and execution across the organisation, ensuring seamless collaboration between teams.
• VP of Engineering – To lead and scale a high-performing engineering function, enhancing product quality and technical innovation.

“Think & Grow helped the organisation better understand the existing sentiment and capabilities within the wider team.” –Rajat Kulshrestha, CEO and Co-Founder, Space machines Company

The Results: A Stronger, More Scalable Business

With these key hires in place and an aligned organisational strategy, Space Machines is now positioned to execute its ambitious growth plans with confidence. The company has enhanced:

✔ Operational Efficiency – Improved internal workflows and processes for faster, smarter decision-making.
✔ Engineering Excellence – Strengthened product development to drive quality, reliability, and innovation.
✔ Team Alignment – A more engaged workforce with a clear strategic vision and shared objectives.

“Think & Grow has helped us both from a technical and business perspective, providing the support we needed to address product development challenges and enhance organisational effectiveness.” –Rajat Kulshrestha, CEO and Co-Founder, Space machines Company

About Space Machines

Space Machines delivers comprehensive space protection through their pioneering Orbitside Assist service, providing rapid on-orbit response to monitor, assist, and protect space assets across all Earth orbits. Their innovative approach combines distributed rapid response capabilities with AI-driven command and control in a layered architecture, enabling 24-hour response times when critical space infrastructure needs support.

Founded in 2018, SMC entered into a landmark launch service agreement with ISRO's (Indian Space Research Organisation) commercial arm, NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), for its Optimus spacecraft on the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV). This partnership represented a significant advancement in international space collaboration.

What sets Space Machines apart is their focus on allied proliferation – deploying intelligent, mass-produced systems that make space security more accessible and efficient. The company serves diverse sectors including defence, intelligence, commercial operations, and civil space programs, offering new insurance models and strategic capabilities. Through their coordinated response network, Space Machines is building an ecosystem where security at scale enables strategic deterrence, sustainability, and opportunity to flourish together.

The Optimus Rollout Mission attracted attention for its innovative design and potential to strengthen Australia’s role in the global space industry. On March 5, 2024, SMC successfully launched Australia's largest-ever private satellite, the 270kg Optimus, aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. SMC plans to launch its second mission in 2026.

Their mission is clear: to safeguard space for everyone by making resilience inevitable, everywhere, always.

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