2024 Winners

Mark Acebo is the Deputy Director, JC4 Strategy and Policy in the Joint Capabilities Group. He has acted as a career mentor for America Needs You and a mentor for AIME, and helped to run an outback holiday educational program for children.

Matilda Austin is a Senior Project Engineer at WSP and a Project Engineer and Captain in the Army at 12 CE Wks, balancing the demands of the Army Reserves and working in the Defence sector at WSP. She is a key driver for STEM activities in defence, involved in leadership mentoring through Defence Force Recruiting, attending outreach events at QUT and UQ, and presenting at forums. 

Chloe Burns is the Operations Coordinator at The Decisive Point. Besides her excellent communication skills, she is heavily involved in mentoring through The Decisive Point’s internship program, and has been an active volunteer at the Bond Children’s Holiday Camp since 2020.

Sophee Clark is a Production Manager at Babcock, responsible for the sustainment of RAN frigates. She mentors her immediate team and supports their careers afterwards, and was involved in the inaugural AIDN NT Young Defence Professionals Program.

Jake Dell-O’Sullivan is the Future Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance Systems Program Office MQ-4C Triton Avionics Team Leader in the Royal Australian Air Force. He also volunteers his time as the President and co-founder of the Air Force Drone Racing Association, where he is Air Force’s fastest drone racing pilot and has personally engaged with thousands of Australia’s STEM youth. 

Tom Gash is the Maintenance Officer of the RQ-7B Shadow 200 in the Australian Army. He is also the Secretary and co-founder of Army Drone Racing Team, where he is able to engage thousands of STEM youth in outreach, and is one of the Army’s fastest drone pilots.

Adrienne Goode is the Senior Marketing & Communications Coordinator at Babcock. She is an Australian Army Reservist, mentors coworkers through Babcock’s Buddy Program, and volunteers in Babcock’s Veterans & Forces Community Network as Vice Chairperson.

Zi Huang is a Product Development Lead at Revolution Aerospace, working in aviation and advanced sensing technology whilst pursuing a PhD in artificial intelligence. He has been involved in outreach programs with high school students, mentored engineering interns, and volunteered at the national Science and Engineering Challenge, the FIRST Lego League robotics competition, and through teaching night classes in machine learning, data science and programming at QUT.

Daniel Hutchinson is the Commercial Director at Aquaterro. He is committed to mentorship, including designing and implementing a company internship program, and has volunteered as a community and school coach for sporting teams, a formal mentor for an aspiring young tennis athlete, and in the Cancer Council’s Relay For Life campaign.

Jimmy Jing is a Technical Professional Systems Engineer at KBR, working in project Land 4111 whilst balancing his Masters of Engineering studies, and his commitment to the Army Reserves. He has volunteered as a high school maths tutor in rural areas and currently volunteers with the Australian Army Cadets, coordinating activities to develop youth confidence and leadership skills.

Matthew Keech is the Acting Director of Logistics for Joint Project 9102 in the Department of Defence Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, leading the Integrated Logistics Support team. He has volunteered time mentoring logistics graduates and members of his team, and assisted in producing knitted goods and care packages for deployed troops.

Dr Emily Kibble is a Project Manager and Analyst in Health Security Systems Australia (HSSA), a division of DMTC. She mentors postgraduate students and interns through the company and holds a leadership role linked to DMTC’s diversity and inclusion agenda, as well as acting as an assessor for the ATSE: Boosting Women in STEM initiative.

Peter Le is the Lead Systems Engineer for the Applied AI business unit at Penten, designing and developing Electronic Warfare and cyber solutions. He mentors high school students as well as company interns and graduates, with an emphasis on soft skills to help young engineers communicate their ideas.

Emily Lucas works as the Project Officer – Defence for Marand Precision Engineering, managing projects such as the sustainment activities on the F35 Engine Removal & Installation Trailer for Lockheed Martin. She has met with year 12 students during the Australian Manufacturing Week Trade Expo to discuss alternate pathways to university, and acted as a career’s advisor at the International Air Show.

Annalyse McDougall is a 3 Wing Deputy Air Force Liaison Officer in the Royal Australian Air Force, responsible for the coordination and management of Australian Air Force Cadet activities across NSW and ACT. She has been a regular blood and stem cell donor and regularly engages with LGBTQIA+ representatives at RAAF Richmond to incorporate inclusion in key events.

Allison Murphy is the Senior Contracts Advisor at Jet Aviation Defence. She participates in mentoring new Contract Advisors and led the establishment of a partnership between Jet Aviation Australia and the AAFC Foundation to create opportunities for Cadets to see that a career in Defence Industry is an alternative to the military.

Siobhan Murphy is a Design Engineer at Rosebank Engineering, responsible for design engineering and capability establishment activities to support the safe return-to-service of aerospace sub-systems and components inducted through the company’s Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility. She has volunteered at the Matt Hall Racing hangar, the Monash University Open Day, and a Monash ‘women in engineering’ panel discussion, and has assisted with hands-on aircraft restorations at air museums.

Christopher Olorenshaw is a Senior Systems Engineer at The Australian Missile Corporation, working with Guided Weapons projects. He has volunteered for the Australian Army Cadets, his local soccer club, and as an engineering ambassador at Monash University, as well as presenting at the PARARI Explosive Ordnance Safety Symposium.

Brenda Palmer is a Manager at Downer Professional Services, managing and contributing to client engagements and projects to ensure high-quality deliverables on time and within budget. She actively engages with Women in ICT and has participated in the push-up challenge for Lifeline Australia, and the Run Army 2022 event, as well as coordinating the company’s involvement in the MS Walk, Run & Roll.

Nicholas Paske is the Associate Manager – Defence and National Security at Accenture Australia. He also acts as the Australia and New Zealand Veterans Lead, establishing a Recognised Prior Learning initiative that funds and supports veterans and has led Accenture’s partnership with Legacy Australia, to provide over 1100 volunteering hours supporting the Legacy Torch Relay.

Nikhil Ramanathan is a PDS Portfolio Lead at Aurecon. He holds fortnightly one-on-one catch ups with each of his project managers to maintain open communication and support, and took part in Soldier On’s March On challenge to support Soldier On’s efforts to raise funds and awareness to help prevent veteran suicide. 

Mallory Rice is the Deputy Support Manager for the Anti-Ship Missile Defence Phased Array Radar System on the ANZAC fleet at CEA Technologies. She is responsible for the coordination of support for ADF projects, including the phased array radar system on the Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac Class Frigates, as well as being recognised as a leader and role model within her company.

Michael Scott is a Research Engineer in the Sir Lawrence Wackett Defence and Aerospace Centre at RMIT University, supporting Defence in aircraft fleet management operations. He is involved in outreach through the Avalon Airshow, RMIT University STEM career days and as a Defence Science Institute (DSI) Student delegate, and acts as a mentor for engineering students in the Defence Industry Internship Program and in RMIT University’s program for Girls in STEM & Women in Defence. 

Digby Sever is a Technician in QMS NDT & NACE, establishing the QMS ceramic coating program and training the workforce. He also represented the inspection and quality control industry at the Department of Education Student pathways and careers exposition.

Liana Taylor is a Senior Combat Systems Integration Engineer at Navantia Australia. She has mentored as part of the company’s internship program, regularly engages in outreach programs and volunteers as a member of the Balloon Association of Victoria.

Matilda Thomas-Smith is a Construction Portfolio Lead at Aurecon. She mentors and facilitates training sessions to support the development of her team, helped organise and took part in a tree planting day at Puckapunyal, and was part of a panel discussion for the students of University of Melbourne.

Rebecca Wakerman Powell is a Manager at Coras, involved in projects including the Land 4120 Rolling Land Electronic Warfare (EW) program, the 2022 Guardian Class patrol boat handover to Cook Islands, and in delivery of the Space Weather Roadmap for the Bureau of Meteorology. She founded not-for-profit Fem Insights in Security (FIS) making a career in Defence and National Security more accessible to women, and is a Member of the Ministerial Advisory Council on Women.

Christopher Walsh is a Manager at Coras, currently delivering project management services to Land 4120, the Land Electronic Warfare Rolling Program. He takes every opportunity to mentor and develop Project Managers and Systems Engineers, also seeks to support veterans in adapting their identity post-military service. In addition to supporting the Covid-19 response and Bushfire Assist 20, Chris has been a volunteer firefighter with NSW RFS.

Jack Walters is the MQ-4C Triton Airworthiness Manager in the Royal Australian Air Force. He voluntarily manages the coordination of FISRSPO rotations for Defence entry level and graduate programs, and provides them with individual mentoring and support, and has provided structured informal training sessions on technical theory, engineering processes, organisation, and management to his team. 

Claire Woodwell is the ADF Drone Racing Association Policy Staff Officer and UAS Industry Engineering Work Experience Coordinator in the Royal Australian Air Force. Through these roles she engages with Australian STEM youth, and furthers UAS skilling and engagement across the UAS industry.