Top 3 reasons to increase your salary in space industry

Top 3 reasons to increase your salary in the space industry

What are the top reasons to increase your salary in space industry, is without a doubt one of the most demanding questions for all space engineers once they have graduated or when they start their career in the space industry.

However, to answer this question, you may have to consider many different and relevant aspects, as we will explain in this article. It is also very important to take into account the gradual increase in salaries over time as you gain experience, statistically speaking, you can reach your highest seniority after working for about 15 years, and then other skills such as team management, coordination or technical and strategic skills become more relevant.

But let us see what are the most important aspects to make money or increase your salary in the space industry:

1. Position and Skills

2. Country

3. Type of company

POSITION and SKILLS

The position you hold plays an important role, particularly the responsibility you may have for leading teams. Positions from Team Leader to Manager can pay up to three times the salary of an ordinary employee, according to recent trends in the space industry.

To be considered for one of these positions, it is important to have at least 5 years’ experience and very strong skills in motivating, coordinating and above all getting the best out of the people you may be responsible for.

You also need to have communication skills, which should be improved as you will be reporting to higher levels, to be able to communicate and above all to give the organisation a strategic vision for the medium and long term.

This brings us to another very important point: your knowledge of the sector, the expertise you can offer and the opportunities you may have to attract new business or consolidate existing business. Contributing to the company’s profit and loss account is undoubtedly the most important card you can play, as it is the most important feature that organisations will take into account and will give you a great deal of strength when negotiating better conditions.

I once had a boss who used to say: “few people make money, and in a few places” we have already seen who earns it, now let’s see where.

COUNTRY

Although the space sector is close to full employment worldwide, the overall unemployment rate and the volume of business that the space sector can do in a given country play a very important role in offering attractive salaries.

High unemployment rates and low/average turnover in the space sector play a negative role in determining salaries. High unemployment rates lead to an increase in demand for the position, thus increasing the number of applicants. Low business volumes in a country lead to a decrease in the supply of companies with this type of profile.

To better understand this concept, let’s take the example of two European countries, Germany and Spain.

Germany has an unemployment rate of around 6%, while Spain has an unemployment rate of 11%. In terms of space business, the difference is much greater, as Germany, together with France and Italy, is one of the biggest players in the space sector in Europe. On the other hand, Spain, which has just set up its Space Agency, has fewer resources and, above all, less industrial fabric in this sector, due to its lack of importance for many years.

It is therefore logical to think that, in addition to having many more opportunities and a greater number of offers to apply for, you will also have higher salaries, as there are many fewer candidates per position due to the theory of supply and demand.

But to answer the question of which are the best places to work more concretely, focusing on Europe as in the previous example, we will see that the top 3 European contributors to ESA are France, Germany and Italy, in that order, with their national public agency already very consolidated in these 3 European countries. I would also like to emphasise that countries such as Luxembourg are betting very heavily on the space sector, having very competitive salaries due to their labour and economic strength.

TYPE OF COMPANY

The type of company is, of course, the last relevant factor to take into account when it comes to aspiring to high salaries in the space industry.

On the one hand, it is true that small companies offer a more varied type of work, as you may have to cover a greater number of functions than you would normally have to in a large company, where the tasks are more concrete and defined by a greater number of specialists in other departments.

Opportunities for promotion can vary greatly, and in many cases it is easier to stand out in a medium-sized organization where there is less internal competition.

Obviously, the larger and more prestigious the company, the more it will reward you for moving up the hierarchy, as your decisions will have a greater impact on the amount of money you move.

Another fundamental aspect is the distinction between public and private companies, which many people are unaware of but which is very important. Many public sector companies offer remarkable benefits to their employees, such as no local taxes, private pension funds or private health insurance.

As a result, salaries in these public organisations are virtually impossible to match in the private sector, with the exception of very senior positions in large corporations.

In short, the space market can offer great opportunities for employability and very competitive salaries, but you need to be flexible when it comes to moving to other countries to take advantage of better conditions. You should also be aware of job offers in public organisations, as they often offer great advantages over private companies.