Conversations with Vanguard Defence

In this episode of the Vanguard podcast, J. Richard Jones is joined by Simon Carroll, President, Saab Canada, and Jason Howard, Saab CPSP Campaign Director. Simon Carroll leads the Canadian Saab teams in Ottawa, Halifax, Medicine Hat, and Burnaby. A former Officer in the Royal Australian Navy, he has many decades of experience in the defence and naval sectors. Jason Howard has 20 years of experience in the defence industry, where he has held positions in business development, strategy, and marketing and sales. Jason has spent the last 5 years working in Saab's naval division, Saab Kockums, where he has now taken responsibility for the company's Canadian Patrol Submarine Project campaign.

The conversation dives into a range of topics from Saab's collaborative approach and the importance of future proofing submarines to Saab's history with Canada and submarine development.

Also in this episode:

And to learn more about Saab, visit Saab.ca

Join host, J. Richard Jones, as he talks to Victor Khoo, Chief Engineer, General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada and Alkarim Amlani, Director of Cyber Programs, General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada. Victor's career has spanned many industries and experiences — from Oil & Gas, SCADA and Telecom to designing cell phones, international airport audio systems, and cryptographic algorithms. He has been with General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada for the past 16 years. Alkarim has over 30 years of engineering and senior leadership experience with both Nortel Networks and General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada, having joined the latter in 2002. Alkarim has profit and loss oversight for General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada's growing Cyber business unit. This responsibility includes the delivery of existing cyber programs to Canada's Department of National Defence (DND) while providing oversight and leadership around various business development and opportunity pursuits related to emerging cyber operations programs in Canada and select international markets.

 General Dynamics Mission Systems - Canada is one of Canada's most established defence and security technology companies, delivering solutions and tools that are battlefield proven and have earned the confidence of soldiers and leaders worldwide.

In this episode:

In the latest episode of Vanguard Weekly, join host J. Richard Jones for the first of an ongoing series that will discuss the topic of training and upskilling using capstones. He is joined by guests Caleb Walker, Chief Strategy Officer for WithYouWithMe and Major General (Retired) Rupert Jones. Caleb is a 20-year combat veteran with a passion for HR and digital transformation as well as cultural change, and a frequent guest of the show. Rupert is a retired senior British Army officer, who served as the Standing Joint Force Commander from November 2018 to July 2021. Together, they tackle the questions of how to measure the returns on staff training and how to determine what value was gained.

Also in this episode:

Today, host J. Richard Jones is joined by Rick Fawcett, Vice President, Operations ADGA. Richard is retired Colonel who served 34 years in the Canadian Armed Forces before taking on executive roles in the defence industry and joining the ADGA team in September 2020. Founded in 1967, ADGA Group Consultants Inc. is a privately owned and operated Canadian company specializing in Advanced Technology Solutions. In December 2021, ADGA was acquired by Commissionaires Ottawa, converging its capabilities with allied companies to provide a one-stop, full spectrum of cyber, electronic, and physical security solutions. ADGA is also committed to initiatives and policies that contribute to jobs, innovation, and economic growth across Canada. Vanguard asks Rick to explain what and how ADGA delivers for Canada.

Also in this episode:

How can digitization be used to provide a tactical edge? That's the question we answer in the latest episode of the Vanguard Podcast. Host J. Richard Jones sits down with Rick Bowes, Vice-President Digitization & Counter-Threat Products, KWESST Inc. to discuss C4ISR and first contact. Rick had a distinguished career as a senior officer in the Canadian Army, retiring in 2003 as a Lieutenant Colonel. He is a graduate of Royal Military College of Canada and served in various operational and staff roles in the Canadian military and on secondment to the British Army. Since retiring from the military, Rick has held various senior roles with defence contractors such as General Dynamics Canada, DRS Technologies Canada (now Leonardo DRS), ATCO Frontec, and ADGA Group Inc. KWESST develops and commercializes proprietary next-generation technologies that deliver a tactical advantage for military, security forces, and personal defence.

In this episode:

Welcome back to a brand-new episode of Vanguard radio with host J. Richard Jones. In this episode we speak about simulation training with two very special guests who come at the topic from two different areas. Anita Pawluk is the President of RaceRocks 3D and Cathy Press is the CEO of Chinook Helicopters. Since co-founding RaceRocks in 2010 Anita has led the company to be recognized as a leading high-tech firm delivering Technology Enabled Learning (TEL) and digital training solutions to the defence and aerospace industries. Cathy is the first female helicopter flight instructor in Canada, and she has grown the family business from two helicopters to an internationally recognized flight school. Both women are very accomplished entrepreneurs who are highly involved in their communities. In the discussion, the three explore what is currently available in terms of simulation training technology, its accessibility, and what the present challenges are in the field. They also discuss what the future holds and what benefits are on the near horizon.

Also in this episode:

Welcome back to a brand-new episode of Vanguard radio with host J. Richard Jones. In this episode we speak about simulation training with two very special guests who come at the topic from two different areas. Anita Pawluk is the President of RaceRocks 3D and Cathy Press is the CEO of Chinook Helicopters. Since co-founding RaceRocks in 2010 Anita has led the company to be recognized as a leading high-tech firm delivering Technology Enabled Learning (TEL) and digital training solutions to the defence and aerospace industries. Cathy is the first female helicopter flight instructor in Canada, and she has grown the family business from two helicopters to an internationally recognized flight school. Both women are very accomplished entrepreneurs who are highly involved in their communities. In the discussion, the three explore what is currently available in terms of simulation training technology, its accessibility, and what the present challenges are in the field. They also discuss what the future holds and what benefits are on the near horizon.

Also in this episode:

Recently the Chief of the Defence Staff issued a direction to begin the reconstitution of the CAF. This undertaking is being implemented on a large scale and is now considered a critical priority. Joining the discussion is Caleb Walker, Chief Strategy Officer from WithYouWithMe. Tune in as they discuss key factors such as modernization, growth, and retention strategies.

In this episode:

In this edition of Vanguard Weekly, J. Richard Jones chats about citizen development and how technology applications are enabling scalable solutions to help citizens. Joining the show are special guests Brian Macdonald, Executive Director with Aman Lara and Caleb Walker, SVP Global Pursuits at WithYouWithMe.

Aman Lara is a not for profit group of former veterans and volunteers helping "good people get out of bad places." They have had tremendous results, first in Afghanistan and now in Ukraine. Tune in to learn about the unique collaboration between WithYouWithMe and Aman Lara. We also explore the special app that has been developed to provide greater accessibility in helping extract people from dangerous places, all the way from the tracking and processing through to the final immigration stage.

In this episode:

In the latest episode of Vanguard Radio, J. Richard Jones is joined by Duncan McSporran, Chief Operations Officer & VP Defence and Public Sector, Kognitiv Spark. Mr. McSporran is a former military officer with a background in applied remote sensing, cartography, and GIS. He is a graduate of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and Oxford Brookes University. In 2016, he helped to set up Kognitiv Spark which has grown into a global leader in the field of Augmented and Mixed Reality. His conversation with J. Richard Jones provides a brief over of Mixed Reality and its role in future deployments.

Also in this episode: