Photo: NASA

Space companies recognize the need for a diverse workforce and diverse perspectives around the table — yet acknowledge the industry has a way to go on this issue. 

“There’s so much data out there on how diverse teams are more effective for problem solving. When I look at any given team or discipline, I don’t want to see any team have a group of people with just basic experience. I am looking for balance and how experience has been applied in a few different settings,” said Nick Merski, BlackSky COO, said on a recent workforce panel at Smallsat Conference in Logan, Utah. 

Merski pointed out that the makeup of the panel — three white men and one white woman — prove there is a need for more diversity. BlackSky became a public company in September 2021, and increased its rigor around diverse recruiting through that process. The company is working to remove aspects of unconscious bias from hiring. “There’s work to do, but it’s on our mind, and it’s something that we’re really focused on,” he said. 

Executives from BlackSky, space situational awareness provider Slingshot Aerospace, and recruiting firm Evona, shared some of the ways they work to make this happen.

Both Slingshot Aerospace and BlackSky signed the “Space Workforce 2030” pledge drafted by The Aerospace Corp., that started in April 2022. The pledge marks a long-term commitment to improving diversity in the workforce, and about 30 companies have signed on so far. 

“Companies have signed up to make sure that DEI is core to their hiring practices,” said Melanie Stricklan, Slingshot CEO. “We’re reporting numbers back on a regular basis. Those efforts go a long way in expressing to the world that we want and need diversity around every table.”

Acknowledging gender gaps and biases in hiring, Stricklan said she goes out of her way to cultivate an environment in which women feel comfortable putting themselves forward. 

“It is factual that a woman feels bad when she brags about herself on her resume,” Stricklan said. “When we get resumes from women, I want to have a phone call to really dig in and understand the resume, how they applied those skills in certain areas. I think women are getting better at this. But as a CEO of a company that wants more women in it, it’s very important for me, helping women have a voice.”

The leaders highlighted diversity both in terms of workforce and diversity of experience. Only about one-fourth of BlackSky’s workforce is satellite systems, and diversity of experience is important to the company in roles where it is possible. Merski said the company scouts adjacent sectors for its tech workforce.

“A ton of adjacent sectors that have really similar problems and really similar skills,” Merski said. “We’re looking for people who solve similar problems with data and cloud computing at scale, hard supply chain problems, and ruggedized environments. We look both for front office, back office and tech people that have had to solve similar challenges that can be applied to the same types of growth circumstances that we’re really feeling in industry today.” 

Both BlackSky and Slingshot have flexible working situations, and are open to remote work and managing the challenges that come with that. Stricklan said when Slingshot Aerospace had to set a pay scale for a national workforce, the company decided to base salaries on the Los Angeles market. This was a solution to varying costs of living and pressing salary competition from big tech companies. 

Evona, a space sector recruiting company based in the U.K., but hires globally, has seen success by removing “unnecessary walls” around work to encourage flexibility. Hires can set their own schedule and the company evaluates based on results. Co-founder Ryan Hill said this has helped the company with diversity and supporting working parents. 

“Start when you want, finish when you want. You don’t have to get a sign-off to pick your kids up from school,” he said. “Weirdly enough, it empowers people to do more work because they want to do the best. They know they’ve got the opportunity to work how they want. It’s empowering people to give them the opportunity to live their life, as well as working to do the job.”