“Find your place in space”: Revitalising SpaceCareers.uk to boost professional development in the space industry

As a leading non-profit organization in the UK, dedicated to connecting industry professionals with emerging talent, SpaceCareers.uk needed a considerable upgrade of their web application to address performance issues and introduce new functionalities. Confronted with an outdated codebase that slowed down page load times up to a minute, SpaceCareers.uk recognized that their platform significantly hindered user engagement and the organization's mission to support career growth and optimize recruitment processes. Furthermore, SpaceCareers.uk was overly reliant on manual processes for setting up new employer accounts and job postings, limiting the organization's growth potential. Therefore, SpaceCareers.uk aimed not only for automation but for a complete redesign of their workflows to overcome their operational difficulties. A pivotal aspect of their challenge was to enhance support for newcomers to the space sector, promoting accessibility and inclusivity to foster a new generation of space professionals. Facing these multilayered challenges, SpaceCareers.uk choose us as their development partner, trusting our capability to rejuvenate their platform seamlessly while maintaining uninterrupted operations.

Revitalizing SpaceCareers.uk's platform required a collaborative approach, combining technical competence with a nuanced understanding of the non-profit sector's unique needs. Our skilled team, comprising a project manager, senior Python developer, senior and medior frontend developers, and a lead developer in a consulting role, tackled the challenge with strategic insight and precision. Employing a robust technology stack that featured Python for backend operations and React with JavaScript/TypeScript for the frontend, we implemented a series of strategic enhancements.

First, we focused on performance optimization. Through comprehensive review and refactoring of the codebase, we significantly improved loading times, elevating the overall user experience. We then introduced an advanced self-checkout system that automated the creation of employer accounts and job postings. This innovation streamlined workflows, freeing up valuable resources so the SpaceCareers.uk team could concentrate on strategic initiatives.

In addition, we augmented the platform's educational resources by creating new content pages. The 'UK Space 101' page serves as an insightful introduction to the UK space industry, while the new 'Advertise' page allows employers to seamlessly publish job listings, making the recruitment process more accessible and effective. To support these enhancements, we implemented a robust DevOps approach, establishing CI/CD pipelines and deploying a cloud-based environment using AWS. This ensured a reliable, scalable infrastructure capable of sustaining the platform's ongoing and future needs.

Through our team's comprehensive solutions, SpaceCareers.uk is now better positioned to connect professionals with industry opportunities, fostering growth and innovation in the UK space sector. By setting new performance benchmarks and embracing automation, the transformation solidified SpaceCareers.uk's stature as a leader in space sector career support. The project's success, marked by a sharp decline in page load times to under half a second, greatly improved user satisfaction and platform reliability. Moreover, the implementation of the self-service system freed up valuable resources, allowing the SpaceCareers.uk team to focus on strategic development rather than operational tasks. Consequently, the platform now attracts more employers and provides more comprehensive information to job seekers. This successful collaboration ensures that SpaceCareers.uk remains agile and responsive, continually refining its offerings to support talent across the UK space sector.