Vanguard Magazine

"DEFSEC serves as a meeting place and an opportunity to engage across our wide region in almost a single stop." — colin stephenson, deFsec's executive director d deFsec ATLANTIC by alexandra sweny 28 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2016 www.vanguardcanada.com The show celebrates a decade-long legacy of welcoming industry leaders from across North America to Canada's ocean playground. DeFseC 2016: Ten years of bringing together the industry's best e xhibitors and delegates do busi- ness against a backdrop of blue at DEFSEC Atlantic. Well-known and well-respected, DEFSEC brings together military members, industry leaders and all levels of government in one of the country's largest defence exhibitions. At the heart of it all is Colin Stephenson, DEFSEC's executive director. "DEFSEC serves as a meeting place and an opportunity to engage across our wide region in almost a single stop," he says. It hasn't always been this way. Born in the 1990s as a platform for the Shearwa- ter International Airshow's MHP Sea King replacement competition, DEFSEC has come a long way in terms of purpose and placement. "Having grown up in a Naval-Air family, I knew Shearwater and the military," says Stephenson. "I combined my corporate experience with this passion to forge the new events into vibrant standalone entities that occupy my time today." Those events are the now-renowned Air Show Atlantic and, following on its heels every year, DEFSEC Atlantic. "As the MHP competition was conclud- ed in 2004, DEFSEC expanded to include all theatres of military procurement and move to downtown Halifax from the Na- val Air base," explains Stephenson, adding that 2016 marks the show's tenth year on the Halifax Waterfront. Just as in past years, DEFSEC will be an adaptable event that develops alongside the industry it serves. "The procurement environment contin- ues to evolve, and our task is to keep com- panies focused on the controllable aspects; their qualifications to be in major supply chains and their investment in talent," he says. "This allows them to keep up with the evolution of the environment and take advantage of opportunities." A series of discussions will provide in- sight on some of the industry's trends. "This year's event will focus on the Hu- man Resources challenges that companies large and small face in the region – and globally," Stephenson explains. "A panel discussion will be our 'conversation starter' on September 7 in the morning." While the Waterfront provides what Ste- phenson calls "the charm of an intimate East Coast gathering", the location also pushes the boundaries to redefine the re- gion. He hopes to establish "a continuing view that while working in a very challeng- ing and long term investment industry, there is opportunity for large and small companies to succeed in Atlantic Canada." "This region is rich with talent," he adds, "and our reach can be global." So, as we kick off DEFSEC 2016, here's to Halifax. It's been ten years – and we're still counting.

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