WHO WE ARE
Established in 1998, ManSat Limited is a Manx registered and Manx owned private company limited by shares and headquartered in the Isle of Man.
ManSat’s goal is to enable commercial space activities to the greatest possible extent by leveraging the many benefits of the Isle of Man as a filing jurisdiction. To do this, we provide comprehensive support for all aspects of the ITU satellite spectrum filing process in the Isle of Man, London, Geneva, and around the world in support of its customers.
ManSat carries out satellite filings for the Isle of Man under a contract with the Isle of Man Government’s Communications Commission. Isle of Man’s satellite spectrum filings are made to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in Geneva via the administration of the United Kingdom (Ofcom).
ManSat is managed by a seasoned executive team supported by its Board of Directors and Advisory Board of highly respected and experienced individuals from all sectors of the space and satellite industry.
The ManSat group of companies includes ManSat UK, and ManSat US.
Executive Team
KATHERINE GIZINSKI
Chief Executive Officer
Katherine is the Chief Executive Officer for ManSat. Before joining ManSat, Katherine worked with U.S. defense contractors to bring commercial satellite and terrestrial communication technologies to austere environments in support of military, diplomatic, first responder, and commercial initiatives.
Katherine serves on the Board of Directors for Space and Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) and mentors entrepreneurs through the Techstars Starburst Space Accelerator.
A graduate of the International Space University’s Executive program, Katherine holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce from the University of Virginia.
Alexis Martin
Chief Consulting Officer
Alexis Martin is the Chief Consulting Officer of ManSat. By leveraging his broad spectrum of skills and his passion for space, Alexis helps clients get the global picture, develop strategies and overcome entry barriers. He has been supporting regulations, policy and spectrum matters since the early 2000s when he started as a spectrum engineer.
Alexis holds a Master of Engineering in optics and electronics from the University of Montpellier, together with a Master of Science in Engineering in information and telecommunication science and technology from Telecom SudParis. He further completed his studies with a year of specialization in satellite telecommunications systems from ISAE-SUPAERO in France and obtained a professional certificate in Corporate Finance – Mergers & Acquisitions from the Sacred Heart University of Luxembourg.
Alexis has held key positions across the satellite industry supporting regulations, strategy, market intelligence or asset management for the likes of Airbus, Avanti or SES. More recently Alexis was serving as Director of market and technical advisory in a public policy firm, and strategically advised and supported renowned clients for e.g.:
• ITU-WRC spectrum campaigns
• Spectrum and asset valuation for M&As
• Identification of orbital slots
• Spectrum sharing studies
Alexis happily conducts business in French and English. And when he is not busy working on making your project reach for the stars, he likes to enjoy a jog in the parks or a ride in the countryside
DR. JENNIFER STONE
Chief Technical Officer
Dr. Jennifer Stone is ManSat’s Chief Technical Officer and a Director of ManSat UK. She also manages ManSat’s scholarship programs to provide educational opportunities to Isle of Man students.
Prior to joining ManSat, Jennifer was a Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Postdoctoral Fellow at Nagoya University. Her area of expertise was astrophysical fluid dynamics and plasma physics, and she has published several papers on topics including the interstellar medium, star formation, and the solar dynamo.
Jennifer was awarded her Ph.D. in Astronomy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also holds Masters degrees in Astronomy and Physics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is a graduate of the International Space University Space Studies Program. She graduated with an M.Phys. (1st Class Honours) in Astrophysics from the University of St Andrews.
Jennifer is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and a Member of the Institute of Physics.
RACHEL BEATTIE
Mrs. Rachel Beattie is the Chief Financial Officer for ManSat, based on the Isle of Man.
Rachel holds Fellowship status with the ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Applied Accountancy, awarded by Oxford Brookes University. These qualifications were completed alongside working for Coutts Private Bank, where she began her career. Prior to joining ManSat, Rachel has held various senior financial management roles within the Online and Digital Technology industries, most recently for SMP Partners Group, a corporate services company providing company management and other services to a wide range of international clients. Rachel recently completed the virtual ISU’s Space Executive Course.
IAN JARRITT
Executive Director for Customer and Corporate Relations
Ian Jarritt is an executive director of ManSat Limited. From May 2001 until April 2015 he was the company’s Chief Financial Officer and company representative for the Isle of Man.
Ian is also Treasurer to the EMEA Satellite Operators’ Association, the European, Middle East and Africa satellite operators trade group representing 23 global and regional operators and headquartered in Brussels.
Prior to joining ManSat, he enjoyed a career spanning more than 30 years with the NatWest Group where, after three years working as Personal Assistant to the Group Chairman, he moved to head the NatWest Group Financial Structuring Unit, a team of 19 specialists devising and implementing tax and treasury based financial structures for the Bank’s major corporate customers.
From there he moved to NatWest’s United States subsidiary, based in New York and New Jersey. He was firstly Head of Corporate Planning within the Business Strategies Division and was subsequently appointed Director of Marketing for the Group’s 300 strong branch network in the New York / New Jersey area. He was closely involved in the acquisition of two New Jersey Banks which were successfully absorbed into the Group during his tenure.
He came to the Isle of Man in September 1994 to take the position of Chief Executive of the Isle of Man Bank where in 1996 the role expanded to assume additional responsibility for the performance and strategic direction of NatWest Group branch banking operations in Jersey and Guernsey.
He is married with one daughter and three grandchildren. His interests include travel, the Rotary Organization, motorcycling, music and most sports.
Lionel Kelly
Company Secretary
Lionel Kelly is ManSat’s Company Secretary with responsibility for aiding ManSat with its Corporate Governance and compliance with all of the relevant company rules and regulations. He is a licensed Chartered Accountant and Corporate Secretary.
Lionel is both founder and director of his own leading local private practice which offers accountancy, taxation and company secretarial services to a wide range of clients both on and of the Island.
He came to his own practice having gained a wealth of experience from over nine years with the leading international accounting firm of KPMG. Prior to his work in with KPMG, Lionel worked with a leading Irish Merchant Bank and the Manx Electricity Authority.
Manx born, Lionel has a passion for horses and show jumping and for Liverpool Football Club.
Board of Directors
CHRIS STOTT
Executive Chairman
Chris Stott serves as the Executive Chairman of ManSat. Chris cofounded ManSat in 1998 with his father, Bryan, and over the following 20 years grew the company as its President and CEO to become the largest commercial provider of satellite spectrum in the global space industry. Chris also serves as the Chair of IceSat, ManSat’s subsidiary company in Iceland, and is the founder, Chair, and CEO of Lonestar Data Holdings Inc.
In 2000 Chris left his position as Director of International Commercialization and Sales with Lockheed Martin Space Operations to become ManSat’s President. Prior to his work with Lockheed Martin, Chris was an executive with the McDonnell Douglas and the Boeing Company working in International Business Development on the Delta Launch Vehicle program.
KATHERINE GIZINSKI
Chief Executive Officer
Katherine is the Chief Executive Officer for ManSat. Before joining ManSat, Katherine worked with U.S. defense contractors to bring commercial satellite and terrestrial communication technologies to austere environments in support of military, diplomatic, first responder, and commercial initiatives.
Katherine serves on the Board of Directors for Space and Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) and mentors entrepreneurs through the Techstars Starburst Space Accelerator.
A graduate of the International Space University’s Executive program, Katherine holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce from the University of Virginia.
DAWN HARMS
EDDIE TEARE
Eddie Teare joined ManSat as a Non Executive Director in February, 2018. Prior to joining ManSat he was a Member of the House of Keys, the national parliament of the Isle of Man, to which he was first elected in November 2004. He has held many Government positions including Chairman of the Electricity Utility, Minister for Health and Social Security, Education and for the last five years, Minister for the Treasury. In this position he was responsible for a budget of £1Bn together with setting tax levels and financial support to businesses and individuals. As a Government Minister he represented the Isle of Man both in the United Kingdom and internationally. In September 2016 he did not offer himself for re-election having decided to retire from politics.
His early career was in banking where he served for over 37 years on the staff of the Isle of Man bank, a subsidiary of the National Westminster Group, finishing as a member of the executive team. Eddie holds other directorships, both in the Isle of Man and internationally and is involved with many charities and community organisations.
He is married with two adult children and his interests include running, cycling and travel.
IAN JARRITT
Executive Director for Customer and Corporate Relations
Ian Jarritt is an executive director of ManSat Limited. From May 2001 until April 2015 he was the company’s Chief Financial Officer and company representative for the Isle of Man.
Ian is also Treasurer to the EMEA Satellite Operators’ Association, the European, Middle East and Africa satellite operators trade group representing 23 global and regional operators and headquartered in Brussels.
Prior to joining ManSat, he enjoyed a career spanning more than 30 years with the NatWest Group where, after three years working as Personal Assistant to the Group Chairman, he moved to head the NatWest Group Financial Structuring Unit, a team of 19 specialists devising and implementing tax and treasury based financial structures for the Bank’s major corporate customers.
From there he moved to NatWest’s United States subsidiary, based in New York and New Jersey. He was firstly Head of Corporate Planning within the Business Strategies Division and was subsequently appointed Director of Marketing for the Group’s 300 strong branch network in the New York / New Jersey area. He was closely involved in the acquisition of two New Jersey Banks which were successfully absorbed into the Group during his tenure.
He came to the Isle of Man in September 1994 to take the position of Chief Executive of the Isle of Man Bank where in 1996 the role expanded to assume additional responsibility for the performance and strategic direction of NatWest Group branch banking operations in Jersey and Guernsey.
He is married with one daughter and three grandchildren. His interests include travel, the Rotary Organization, motorcycling, music and most sports.
VICTOR BERSTEIN
Victor Bernstein retired as Chief Executive Officer of Manna Energy Ltd., that had been an Isle of Man based organization that was created to deploy appropriate technologies that allow subsistence level communities in Africa and the developing world to transition to sustainable economies characterized by health, education and gender equality
Prior to the Manna position, Mr. Bernstein retired as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Loral Skynet (now subsumed in Telesat), a leading satellite services provider offering broadcast, video data and internet communications solutions globally for private industry and government. There he was responsible for all legal matters, the company’s regulatory affairs and all contracting matters with customers and suppliers. In addition, Mr. Bernstein had had primary responsibility for Human Relations matters at Loral Skynet. Mr. Bernstein was the primary legal advisor to the Loral Global Alliance, a worldwide network of satellite operators that provides customers with global satellite solutions while focusing on local and inter-regional customer requirements. He was a member of the company’s management leadership team which was responsible for all major decisions for the company. He also served on the board of Stellat, a French satellite operator that was a joint venture of Loral, Europe*Star, and FranceTelecom.
Mr. Bernstein serves on the boards of directors IceSat ehf and of the Wood River Land Trust, Hailey, Idaho, USA.
Mr. Bernstein first entered private practice after graduation from law school in 1972. He joined the law department at Western Electric, then the manufacturing and supply arm of the Bell System. There, and after moving to AT&T, he was primarily responsible for corporate and securities matters, eventually playing a major role in the Bell System Divestiture and the creation of the Bell Regional Holding Companies. He remained involved in corporate legal work for several years at AT&T, and then moved to work in the commercial area, where he became the principal legal counsel to AT&T Skynet, while working on diverse telecommunications matters. Mr. Bernstein was instrumental in the acquisition of AT&T Skynet by Loral Space and Communications, and joined the company as general counsel when it became Loral Skynet.
Mr. Bernstein has acted as an arbitrator in commercial matters at the American Arbitration Association.
Board of Advisors
GEORGE ABBEY
Mr. George Abbey is the Senior Fellow for Space Policy at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University in Houston, Texas.
Mr. Abbey was formally the Director of the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, and as such was responsible for NASA’s Human Space Flight Programs, including the Space Shuttle and International Space Station programs.
Mr. Abbey holds the NASA Exceptional Service and Exceptional Achievement awards and is also a recipient of the US Presidential Medal of Freedom.
THE HON. JOHN BRYANT
The Hon Mr. John Bryant is a partner with Glast, Phillips, and Murphy of Dallas, Texas, specializing in Telecommunications Law.
Mr. Bryant served in the US House of Representatives for 14 years and led the US Delegation to the World Radio Conference in 1997.
DR. HENRY CHASIA
Dr. Henry Chasia is the former Executive Deputy Chairman of the NEPAD e-Africa Commission and also the former Deputy Secretary General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).
Dr. Chasia joined the ITU following a distinguished career with Intelsat and as a Board Member of Inmarsat.
GREGG DAFFNER
Mr. Gregg Daffner is Chief Executive Officer of Gap Sat Limited and is the former President and Co-Founder of Asia Broadcast Satellite (HK), Ltd.
Prior to joining ABS, Mr. Daffner served as President of G3 Global Communications Consulting where he was responsible for satellite telecom ventures.
He has held senior executive positions with PanAmSat, Lockheed Martin Global Telecommunications, Cable & Wireless Hong Kong Telecom, Lockheed Martin Intersputnik, Q-east broadband, and served as Director of International Policy for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
THE HON. NIGEL EVANS M.P.
The Hon Mr. Evans M.P. is the former Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons and has served as a Member of the UK Parliament since 1992.
Mr. Evans is the Vice Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Space Committee, and former Shadow Spokesman for Constitutional and Welsh Affairs, and is a Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party.
MARK FULBROOK
Mr. Mark Fullbrook is the co founder and managing director of CTF Partners Limited and is the former Managing Director of Parliamentary Liaison Services Ltd.
Mr. Fullbrook is currently retained by over 20 Members of the British Parliament as their Communications Advisor.
Outside of Great Britain, Mr. Fullbrook has extensive experience in US, European, Russian Commonwealth, and African politics and political campaigning.
JAY HONEYCUTT
Mr. Jay Honeycutt serves on the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Board of Space Services Inc. and is the former President of Lockheed Martin Space Operations (LMSO) Company in Houston, Texas.
Mr. Honeycutt came to Lockheed Martin from NASA, where he was Center Director for the Kennedy Space Center.
Mr. Honeycutt holds NASA’s Exceptional Service and Exceptional Achievement awards and is also a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
DR. RAMIN KHADEM
Dr. Ramin Khadem is a Main Board Director of Soho China Limited and is the former Chief Financial Officer of Inmarsat.
Dr. Khadem is also the former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the International Space University (ISU) in Strasbourg, France.
MICHAEL POTTER
Mr. Michael Potter the founder of Geeks Without Frontiers and is a Main Board Director of Global Connect and a Director of Paradigm Ventures and a Main Board Director of the Manna Energy Foundation and a Senior Fellow of the International Institute of Space Commerce.
Mr. Potter is the former Vice Chairman, President and Co Founder of Esprit Telecom plc.
Mr Potter is also a former international telecommunications Analyst at the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, D.C.
MARK RIGOLLE
Mr. Mark Rigolle CEO of Leosat, and is also a Co-Founder and Board Member of the satellite broadband company, Kacific, and he also serves as the Chief Financial Officer of GapSat.
Mr. Rigolle served as the Chief Executive Officer of O3b Networks Limited from February, 2010 to March, 2011.
Mr. Rigolle served as Chief Financial Officer of SES S.A. (Formerly SES Global SA) from July 1, 2004 to February 2010.
He joined SES Global from Belgacom, where he held various positions in the Financial and Strategic Areas as Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer and Chief Financial Officer.
Prior to joining Belgacom, he worked for ABN AMRO and for Sanwa Bank.
Mr. Rigolle has served as a Director of SES ASTRA S.A., SES AMERICOM, Inc. NSAB, AsiaSat and Star One.
Mr. Rigolle holds a degree in economic sciences from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.
CHRIS HALL
Chris studied Engineering at St. Catherine’s College, Cambridge and graduated with a First Class Honours Degree in 1984. He subsequently attended the Sloan Masters Program at the London Business School in 1995, where he graduated with distinction. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors and has recently passed the IOD Certificate and Diploma in Company Direction.
In April 2011 after a successful executive career, most recently as Managing Director of Manx Telecom, a position he held since 1999, Chris left full time employment in order to pursue a pluralistic career path. He is currently an angel investor in two start-up businesses (App55 and Isansys), a non executive director for several businesses in the Isle Of Man and UK and provides consultancy via his consulting company, Can Do Consulting.
Chris is also a Director of IOM Hospice, Chairs the IOM Chamber of Commerce e-Gaming Strategic Advisory Board, is a member of the IOM Public/Private Sector e-business advisory group, and a member of the Chamber of Commerce ICT Committee.
DR. JAYASURIYA
Dr. Jayasuriya served as ManSat’ Chief Operating Officer and as a Main Board Director for 18 years. An expert in satellite regulation, Dr. Jayasuriya came to ManSat after an extensive career in both government and industry.