Isakowitz, who became Aerospace’s 7th CEO in 2016, has overseen the strategic transformation of the corporation to meet the evolving needs of a growing set of partners and to drive greater integration across the whole of the space enterprise.

Under his leadership, Aerospace has worked alongside its government customers to outpace threats to the country’s national security by making critical investments in its space warfighting infrastructure and pursuing bold new ideas to accelerate the delivery of end-to-end capabilities. The corporation has embraced its role as a collaborator and convener across the space industrial base, driving the adoption of cutting-edge commercial capabilities for government missions. And it has developed new approaches that enable greater speed and agility while continuing to support government leaders as they manage mission risk.

“The past decade has been the most dynamic time in space since the days of Apollo. We have seen the establishment of new organizations like Space Force, an unprecedented increase in launches and the number of satellites on orbit, surging private investment, and the increased application of powerful technologies like AI and machine learning to the space sector,” Isakowitz said. “Aerospace has been a leader throughout and has continually adapted to stay ahead of the change. We have invested in differentiating technical capabilities that neither the private sector nor the government would pursue, forged new commercial and international partnerships, and drove greater integration across key national security and civil space mission areas.”

“By every metric, Aerospace is in a stronger position today than it has been at any point in its history. But we all know that the pace of change in space is not slowing down, and there remain real threats to our country’s leadership in space that must be countered,” said Aerospace Board of Trustees Chair, Gen. Paul J. Selva, USAF (Ret.).“We look forward to Steve’s continued leadership during the critical year ahead, and we are committed to finding a leader who can sustain and deepen Aerospace’s impact for the nation’s space programs into the next decade and beyond.”

During his time as CEO, Isakowitz also spearheaded the move of Aerospace headquarters to the Washington D.C. area to be closer to key decision makers and oversaw a reorganization of Aerospace’s support to key customers to better enable enterprise integration and agile acquisition. Throughout, Aerospace has invested in top talent and world class R&D while holding cost growth well below inflation.

Isakowitz, who previously served in leadership positions at Virgin Galactic, NASA and the Department of Energy, will remain in his current role until after a successor has been selected. Aerospace will launch a search for its next President and CEO immediately, with Board of Trustees member David W. Thompson leading the search committee.

The Aerospace Corporation has engaged executive search and leadership advisory firm Russell Reynolds Associates to support its search.