Women In Aerospace

What Women In Aerospace does

Women In Aerospace (WIA) is a nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1985 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., dedicated to expanding women's leadership opportunities and visibility across the aerospace community. The organization serves aerospace industry professionals spanning human spaceflight, aviation, remote sensing, satellite communications, robotic space exploration, and related policy fields, alongside corporate, nonprofit, and academic employers that sponsor employee participation.

WIA's core offerings are not technology products but a structured portfolio of membership programs, events, and professional-development content. Individual memberships are sold at four tiers ranging from $20 (student/retiree) to $99 (private sector/corporate), with a $25 discount for employees of Gold and Platinum corporate sponsors. Corporate memberships span six tiers from $500 (Industry Newcomer / Nonprofit) to $10,000 (Platinum), bundling 5-100 complimentary individual memberships and, at the upper tiers, professional development vouchers. Beyond dues, WIA generates revenue through the Annual Awards Dinner & Ceremony (its flagship event recognizing seven award categories), the Program Series (WIA Breakfast Club roundtables with congressional staffers and WIA Stories panels, capped at 40 attendees), and the Career Empowerment webinar Series delivered with Marshall Brown & Associates.

The organization's go-to-market is event-driven and partnership-mediated: website self-serve for individual and corporate sign-ups, combined with referrals through its 80+ corporate partners and its network of sister organizations in Canada, Europe, Mexico, Japan, and Costa Rica. WIA holds an appointed seat on the National Space Council's User Advisory group and co-founded the Space4All inclusion campaign, giving it distribution into U.S. aerospace policymaking. The organization is led by Chair Jennifer L. Hanley (since 2025), Executive Director Annette Summers, and WIA Foundation President Dr. Rebecca Keiser, and operates on membership dues, event registrations, and sponsorships with no disclosed venture or equity funding.

Name

Women In Aerospace

Legal name

Women in Aerospace

Website

https://womeninaerospace.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Women In Aerospace is a nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1985 that serves aerospace industry professionals and corporate employers through tiered memberships, the Annual Awards Dinner, and professional-development programming across a global sister-organization network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Aerospace Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)

Keywords

• Professional aerospace association
• Aerospace membership programs
• Aerospace industry networking
• Professional development webinars
• Aerospace awards programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Membership Dues: Individual memberships at various tiers including student, retiree, government, nonprofit, and private sector/corporate categories, with discounted rates for employees of Gold and Platinum level corporate sponsors.
2. Corporate Membership Dues: Corporate memberships at six levels (Industry Newcomer, Nonprofit, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum) ranging from $500 to $10,000 annually, with tiered benefits including complimentary individual memberships for employees.
3. Event Registration and Sponsorship: Revenue from the Annual Awards Dinner & Ceremony registration, table purchases, and corporate sponsorship opportunities at the premier annual event.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

WIA operates a nonprofit professional association offering multi-tiered individual and corporate membership programs that grant access to networking events, professional development, and recognition opportunities. The organization's flagship offerings include the Annual Awards Dinner & Ceremony honoring women's excellence in aerospace across seven award categories, the Career Empowerment Series of professional development webinars with a certificate track, and the Program Series featuring the WIA Breakfast Club roundtables with congressional staffers and WIA Stories panel discussions. WIA also operates an Aerospace Professional Mentors program that pairs industry professionals with student rocketry teams, supported by an online membership portal and global sister organizations.

Product overview

Women in Aerospace (WIA) is a professional membership organization offering a unified portfolio of programs and services rather than a technology product. The core offerings include Individual and Corporate Membership programs with multiple tiers, the flagship Annual Awards Dinner & Ceremony honoring outstanding women in aerospace across seven award categories, the Career Empowerment Series providing professional development webinars, Program Series featuring WIA Breakfast Club and WIA Stories events, and the Aerospace Professional Mentors initiative connecting industry professionals with student teams. WIA also operates Global Networks (WIA-Canada, WIA-Europe, WIA-Mexico, WIA-Japan, WIA-Costa Rica) and co-founded the Space4All campaign as part of its mission to expand women's leadership opportunities in aerospace.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Individual Membership Programs Subscription-based annual memberships for individuals in the aerospace community across four tiers: Student/Retiree ($20/year), Government/Nonprofit ($45/year), Private Sector/Corporate ($99/year), and Gold/Platinum Sponsor Employees ($74/year). Members receive access to networking, events, awards programs, professional development, and the member directory.
• Corporate Membership Programs Annual corporate sponsorships at six tiers (Industry Newcomer $500, Nonprofit $500, Bronze $1,000, Silver $2,500, Gold $5,000, and Platinum $10,000) providing aerospace companies, nonprofits, and academic institutions with complimentary employee memberships (5 to 100 depending on tier), website recognition, professional development vouchers, and sponsor-discounted individual memberships.
• Annual Awards Dinner & Ceremony Annual awards ceremony and dinner held since 1985 (40th edition on December 11, 2025) recognizing distinguished individuals across seven award categories for dedication, passion, and significant impact in the aerospace industry. Includes event registration, table sales, and corporate sponsorship opportunities.
• Career Empowerment Series Professional development webinar series delivering workshops on leadership, communication, and career advancement, leading to a WIA Career Empowerment Certificate. Content delivered in partnership with Marshall Brown & Associates, which provides executive coaching and leadership development programming.
• Program Series (WIA Breakfast Club and WIA Stories) Event programming comprising WIA Breakfast Club (intimate roundtable discussions with Congressional staffers) and WIA Stories (panel discussions with women leaders sharing personal career journeys). Sessions are limited to 40 attendees to facilitate off-the-record conversations on critical aerospace topics.
• Aerospace Professional Mentors Mentorship initiative connecting WIA member volunteers with student teams competing in The American Rocketry Challenge, the world's largest student rocket contest with nearly 5,000 competing students annually. WIA serves as Education Partner alongside the Aerospace Industries Association.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• WIA MexicocoreOthers · 1 January 2017WIA-Mexico was officially established in 2017 as part of WIA's expansion into new global markets. Contact through Facebook and Twitter social media channels.
• WIA JapancoreOthers · 1 January 2017WIA-Japan was officially established in 2017 as part of WIA's expansion into new global markets.
• WIA EuropemajorOthers · 1 June 2009WIA-Europe was established in June 2009 as WIA's first sister organization. The formation was announced at the Le Bourget Paris Air Show. Simonetta di Pippo served as WIA-Europe's first president and Claudia Kessler as first board chair.
• WIA CanadamajorOthersWIA-Canada was established in June 2009 as WIA's first sister organization. Val Wilson serves as WIA-Canada President. The partnership was officially signed at the Farnborough International Air Show in July 2010.
• WIA Costa RicaminorOthersWIA-Costa Rica operates as part of WIA's global network with social media presence through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
• Space4AllmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWIA is a founding partner in the nationwide Space4All campaign. WIA was appointed to the National Space Council's User Advisory group as part of this initiative. The campaign was featured in White House fact sheets.
• The American Rocketry ChallengecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWIA is an Education Partner of The American Rocketry Challenge, the world's largest student rocket contest with nearly 5,000 students competing annually. WIA recruits Aerospace Professional Mentors for student teams through its member network.
• Aerospace Industries AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWIA partners with the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) for The American Rocketry Challenge program. AIA organizes the challenge in partnership with the National Association of Rocketry.
• Marshall Brown & AssociatescoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerWIA partners with Marshall Brown & Associates for professional development webinars and the Career Empowerment Series. The firm provides executive coaching and leadership development content.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Women in Technology International (WITI): Global nonprofit supporting women in technology roles, including aerospace tech-adjacent segments. WITI's dues/sponsorship model and corporate partnership structure are similar to WIA's, though its focus is broader technology rather than aerospace-specific.
• Out to Innovate / oSTEM: Nonprofit supporting LGBTQ+ professionals in STEM with a comparable membership/mentorship/event-driven model. Functionally similar operating mechanics but a different diversity focus; competes for some of the same corporate DEI sponsorship budgets.
• National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE): One of the largest U.S. student-governed STEM organizations with corporate-tier memberships, annual conventions, and aerospace/defense partners. Competes for a portion of the same corporate DEI sponsorship dollars and shares WIA's diversity-and-inclusion positioning.
• Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE): Large Hispanic STEM organization with corporate sponsorship tiers, an annual convention, and partnerships with defense and aerospace primes comparable to WIA's Platinum sponsors. Competes for overlap in DEI-related corporate partnerships rather than direct mission overlap.

Broad incumbents

• Aerospace Industries Association (AIA): The principal trade association for U.S. aerospace and defense manufacturers (including Boeing, Lockheed, Northrop). AIA already partners with WIA on The American Rocketry Challenge and competes for the same Platinum-tier corporate sponsorship dollars across overlapping D.C.-based policymaker access.
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA): The largest professional society for aerospace engineers and professionals globally. As a broader incumbent, AIAA offers individual/corporate memberships and aerospace programming that competes for some of the same corporate dollars and members as WIA, though AIAA is technical rather than diversity-focused.

Direct peers

• Association for Women in Science (AWIS): National advocacy organization for women in STEM, including aerospace-adjacent physical and biological sciences. AWIS shares WIA's dues-based model, awards programming, government-relations advocacy, and corporate sponsorship structure, with overlapping corporate audiences.
• Women in Defense (WID): A National Defense Industrial Association affiliate advancing women in the U.S. national security and defense ecosystem. Highly comparable in mission overlap (aerospace/defense primes, government access, awards programming) and revenue model (individual/corporate dues, annual awards).
• Women in Aviation International (WAI): Membership organization advancing women in the aviation/aerospace industry, with dues-based memberships, an annual awards banquet, and scholarship programs. Direct overlap with WIA's mission, member base (aerospace professionals), and event-driven model.
• Society of Women Engineers: Largest U.S. professional organization advancing women in engineering, with a similar dues/events/sponsorship model targeting women in STEM disciplines that overlap with aerospace (mechanical, electrical, systems engineering). SWE's 50+ year track record and 40,000+ member scale make it the closest comparable in mission and operating model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/womeninaero
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC-AQqefY2Hg_oq1cYSXPwNA
• Facebookfacebook.com/WomeninAerospace
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/women-in-aerospace

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Women In Aerospace