Vanguard Magazine

D DEFSEC 40 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015 www.vanguardcanada.com DEFSEC Atlantic is now entering its seventh year at their downtown Halifax location, but they didn't start there. The event began dur- ing the 90s, and was originally devised as a way to showcase potential replacements for the Canadian Navy's Sea Kings. Colin Ste- phenson, the DEFSEC's Executive Director, has been with the organization since 2003. "I was initially hired to manage the defence tradeshow portion of the show," he explains. "Then, as the event split into an airshow that now travels around the Maritimes, and a tradeshow that takes place annually … I man- age both of them." Stephenson says the show – in its current form – just kind of happened. "Over time, the folks that were presenting the various compo- nents of those competing helicopters would bring their landing gear company, or foreign looking radar company, or whatever other type of element that would be added to the project, and it turned into a tradeshow by ac- cident," Stephenson explains. The organization's challenge, back in 2003- 04, as the Maritime Helicopter Program was awarded, was to convert that energy and the atmosphere it created into a tri-service event that would service the larger procurement community. "That's what we have really pursued since 2004," Stephenson explains. "To provide se- curity, navy, air force, army, procurement proj- ects where everyone can participate and make it an event that is beyond a single project. Because many large Canadian defence proj- ects take a long time to work themselves through the procurement pipeline, it's very important for DEFSEC to remain engaged in the defence and security sectors. The organi- zation can't rely solely on companies looking to sell their wares to the government in order to sustain the annual show, and must respond to evolving interests. "When industry has a particular interest, we try to respond to that. When the military has a particular project coming up, we try to include that in our theme, for example," Stephenson says. "Including those groups [Industry, DND, government departments] in our steering committee is the key to year- round involvement and coming out with a product that is relevant and topical for all at- tendees." But the focus can't all be on content, Ste- phenson explains. You need to pay attention to the structure and the layout of the event in order to enhance attendee experience. "Over the last number of years," he says, "we've asked for feedback from our various partners and attendees, and the changes we've come up with are a response to those." For example, DEFSEC used to be sched- uled on a Thursday-Friday, and people who attended the show commonly rushed home for the beginning of the weekend, or booked flights for Thursday morning, Friday night. This year, DEFSEC has been moved to a Wednesday-Thursday in order to ease travel for those coming from away. The floorplan has been changed as well. "Everyone is going to be set inside the hall this year, without having to move to another building." Stephenson explains. Along with this change, all meals are now included. "Ev- eryone's going to eat together, and that en- hances the experience so that you don't have to scramble for tickets to get into a certain hall, or get to eat at a certain table. It's going to be a buffet, very communal," he explains explains. In terms of growth, Stephenson doesn't re- ally see the show expanding that much; he's focused more on the quality of the experience. Right now, the show attracts approximately 1,200-1,300 people, and that's right where the organization wants it. Executive Director Colin Stephenson explains what's at the heart of Canada's East Coast show. DEFSEC 2015

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