With a judging panel including former senior ADF and military leaders, academics, business executives, entrepreneurs and innovators, an Australian Defence Industry award forms peer-reviewed recognition of your capabilities in defence and passion for driving the industry forward.
Anntonette Dailey brings more than 15 years senior executive capability, working across multiple Government agencies, not for profit and consultancies.
As a chartered engineer, Anntonette was recently the Executive Director at the Australian Space Agency, having commenced as part of the inaugural leadership team in 2018 and was responsible for managing its operating environment, managing stakeholders and was instrumental in the establishment of the Australian Space Discovery Centre, publishing the first three whole of Government State of Space Reports, the financial controller and management of the public affairs, outreach and parliamentary activity.
Anny has always had a soft spot for the space sector, attending space camps at school, presenting to Parliament in 2008 on the need for better space coordination. She is also a major supporter for developing the current and future STEM workforce. Her leadership and passion was recognised by AFR as one of Australia’s 100 most Influential Women and as young graduate of the year by the University of Technology, Sydney.
As a mother to Skye (6) and Flynn (1), Anny enjoys caravanning, renovating and car racing.
With over 25 years’ experience in Senior Executive Leadership roles, his working career has spanned the globe and is a success story to be shared. While employed with Compass Group, George thrived as the Executive Director, his main responsibilities included HR/IR; Risk Management; Health, Safety, Environment and Quality; and Media Relations.
George is a committed advocate of sustainable outcomes in the area of both Indigenous employment and Indigenous business.
Under George’s leadership, Compass Group achieved a number of important milestones in its pursuit to promote Indigenous economic development including the following awards: Inaugural recipient of the Prime Minister's Corporate Leaders for Indigenous Employment Award; judged one of the "Top Ten Best Employers in Australia"; winner of the "Prime Minister's Employer of the Year" award ; the IFAP Safe Way Gold Award and in 2010, the Australian Mines and Metals Association (AMMA) “Industry Innovation” Award in recognition of our pioneering role in implementing Indigenous joint venture and employment strategies, the Restaurant and Catering George Muir Professional Development award for Indigenous Development programs in 2013. The Supply Nation of the year Corporate member in 2014.
Now a Director of the Indigenous Defence & Infrastructure Consortium (iDiC), George and the team at the iDiC are at the forefront of change working closely with federal and state governments, captains of corporate industry and prime contractors; and have the opportunity to innovate and develop a better future.
George is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is the Chair of Sydney Montessori School and was a director Restaurant & Catering Australia, Supply Nation and the Sydney Convention and Exhibition centre.
George is married to Krista, has 4 daughters and enjoys being with family and connecting with the land and water.
John has been CEO of Mills Oakley for fourteen years, armed with a mandate to position the firm as one of Australia’s most successful national law partnerships.
John leads the firm’s overall direction and strategy, working closely with all partners. He has infused Mills Oakley with his own brand of energetic leadership and spirit to deliver on the firm’s vision of outstanding legal expertise and client service.
Prior to joining Mills Oakley, John held senior roles at a “Big Four” accounting firm and a national plaintiff law firm.
Kim Chandler McDonald is the Co-Founder/CEO of a Deep-Tech firm that has a developed a next-gen all-in-one, secure, permission-based, secure by design, data integration, sharing and governance platform, which is focussed on data and digital enablement for all.
Kim is a globally respected thought leader on disruptive approaches, transformational trends and innovative business strategies - particularly those involving innovation and empowerment in the global DACE (Digital, Attention and Collaboration Economies). An internationally sought after board member, Kim’s current board positions include the Paris-based Cybersecurity Advisors Network, Women In AI (Australia, NZ), Griffith University’s Enterprise Advisory Board and Washington D.C.’s WordSmithRapport.
The award-winning author of ‘Innovation: How Innovators Think, Act and Change Our World’, ‘Flat World Navigation: Collaboration and Networking in the Global Digital Economy’; and co-author of ‘Entrepreneurial Renaissance: Cities Striving Towards an Era of Renaissance and Revival’, Kim’s most recent book ‘Postcards From Tomorrow’ continues to raise money for Lou’s Place, Sydney’s only daytime drop-in centre for female victims of domestic abuse and coercive control.
Mark Hodgson comes from a corporate background and has held senior leadership roles in the UK, Australasia, Central Europe and Russia. He is now a leading thinker in Transformation and Influence - helping leaders to unlock their inner talents for success and happiness.
Mark has inspired large teams across a range of commercial and not-for-profit businesses. A natural disruptor, he helps executives, consultants and entrepreneurs to position themselves as leading influencers and is an expert in leading change.
His book, ‘Time to Shine: Adapting who you are and what you know to succeed in the ideas economy’ explains what we need to DO, BE and BUILD to show up as successful, fulfilled and authentic Influencers.
Mark is an Executive Coach, Author, Advisor and Keynote Speaker.
Neville Hurst is a senior lecturer in property studies at RMIT University, Victoria, Australia. Originally trained as an electrical engineer he has worked extensively in industry and for the last 33 years in the property sector as a practitioner and academic. Prior to joining education Neville owned and operated his own real estate agency for many years selling and managing properties on behalf of clients. A significant part of this business was a business brokerage run in partnership with his business partner. Academically Neville’s research interest focuses on real estate industry practices, valuation practices, housing markets and in particular energy efficient housing. Currently undertaking his Phd, Neville is investigating real estate agent attitudes and engagement with sustainable housing and is working with peak industry bodies to create greater awareness of the importance of energy efficient housing for a sustainable future.
Dr Paul Scully-Power is an integrator, strategist and orthogonal thinker and is Australia’s first astronaut. He has a unique international background in Industry, Government, Defence, Space and Academia in the US, UK, Australia, and NZ, and is well known for his network of people and institutions around the world. A leader in applying technology, he has broad expertise in national security & intelligence, aviation & aerospace, cybersecurity, remote sensing, and systems analysis & ICT. He is currently engaged in AI (national iAward for innovation), UAVs, microsatellites, smart sensors, nanotechnology and big data analytics.
Dr Scully-Power has led many high-tech, defence and security programs. He held executive appointments under Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton, and was Deputy to the Associate Technical Director, US Naval Undersea Warfare Center, where he held the US Navy Distinguished Chair of Underwater Acoustics He was a Research Associate at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Chairman of Membership of the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering, President of the Fort Trumbull Federal Credit Union, and served on the Universities & Colleges Accreditation Board and the US Office of Naval Research.
Dr Scully-Power qualified for very high altitude full pressure suit flying at Edwards Air Force Base, and was a flight crew instructor in the NASA Astronaut Office, Johnson Space Center, Houston Texas, where he became Australia’s first astronaut flying aboard Challenger on the 13th mission of the Space Shuttle
Tania Ezra BA(ANU), MPM (USQ), PGCertAstro(Swin), ITIL, PMP, PMI-RMP, CPPD, MRMIA, MAIPM, MASA, SFC is a Security Specialist with Microsoft. She has extensive academic achievements and over 20 years of intimate end to end involvement in complex high-risk security programs, and has previously worked IBM, CSC and Logica.
Thomas Green is a co-founder of Neumann Space where he served as a research and policy analyst and in-house counsel for almost five years. He is currently a Project Manager in the Emerging Technologies branch of Transport for NSW and is a member of the International Institute of Space Law, the Royal Society of NSW and the Australasian Association for the History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Science.
Thomas is currently undertaking a PhD at the University of Wollongong on the regulation and enforcement of new technology — specifically concerning access to space by commercial and non-government entities.
Thomas has also previously worked on software projects and start-ups related to machine learning, worked in private equity, served as a Ministerial Advisor on emergency services and road safety, and was a business coordinator for the COVID-19 response team for Transport for NSW during the COVID outbreaks in NSW throughout 2020 and worked in the private sector as a Quality Manager through 2021 managing the design, development and production of novel COVID-19 testing kits to improve pandemic management responses and patient outcomes.
Troy Swan is the Chief Legal Officer, Company Secretary and Board Member of the $1.4billion office products company Winc Australia & New Zealand. Winc was formed following the acquisition of Staples & OfficeMax by US based private equity firm Platinum Equity.
He has been publicly recognised as one of Australia's leading corporate lawyers and was named the 2017 Australian Lawyer of the Year (FMCG) and a General Counsel of the Year finalist in both 2016 and 2017. He became only the second Australian lawyer to win the prestigious International Value Champions Award in San Francisco and was recently named in Washington, the Association of Corporate Counsel Member of the Year, from over 43,000 lawyers worldwide for his commitment to the legal community and profession. This was the first time this honour was ever awarded to a lawyer outside America.
Known for his business judgment, he is highly active within the Sydney legal and business community. He is a regular speaker and media commentator on legal affairs, innovation and large scale legal service delivery models and leads an award winning legal team based in Sydney.
