I disagree with the idea that save scumming inherently makes the game less challenging. The campaign layer of the game is certainly less challenging if you are save scumming, but the combat layer is not necessarily. In fact, you can argue that save scumming allows you to take much more difficult fights in the combat layer that you would never take without save scumming because there is no reason in the campaign layer to take risks. One main difference between this game and a roguelike is that there are no campaign layer requirements in this game, so the player never has to take any risks. In a roguelike, you always have to go to the next floor, and eventually the final boss, so you are forced to take risks in order to become strong enough to beat the game. In starsector, there is no final boss, and there are no required challenges, so there is no reason to take risks. Eventually you will reach the same power level regardless of how risky you play. This ties into another difference between starsector and typical roguelikes: game length. Losing a roguelike means losing a 1-2 hour run. Fleet wiping in starsector can mean losing (IRL) days of gameplay. Most people don't have time for that sort of gameplay loop, so they are incentivized to not take risks, unless they can save scum. Then there is the question of scumming for rare items with very low drop chances. The game is not 'more challenging' if you have to grind for something, it's just more boring.
Viewing officers in this light, I agree with Megas. It is not particularly challenging to get an officer to a high level, it just takes a long time. Taking dangerous combats does not make your officers any better (you could reach the same point by taking easy combats), so there is no incentive to take dangerous fights. In fact I am disincentivized to take dangerous fights (which are fun) because I might lose my officers, so officer death is actually dis-incentivizing fun gameplay in favor of boring but safe gameplay.
IMO this game really needs more reasons to take dangerous fights, rather than more reasons to NOT take dangerous fights. Designing the game to minimize grindy/boring gameplay (that would cause save scumming) is a good thing.