Highlights
Learn how to unlock the potential of veterans for your organization. BAE Systems Australia has developed a guide for businesses wanting to learn from their experience about how to best engage and support veterans in their organizations. In this session, BAE will share its "Veterans Employment Best Practices" guide.
Overview
BAE Systems Australia is a proud employer of veterans, with more than 10 percent of its 5,000-strong workforce having served in the military. Providing careers for veterans extends beyond its commitment to developing an inclusive and diverse workplace. BAE actively hires veterans for their wealth of knowledge, experience and skills they bring to all areas of the business. Armed with strong personal skills and attributes, such as leadership, communication, loyalty, emotional intelligence, punctuality, commitment, persistence, resilience and agility—and a working knowledge of the defense force—veterans are uniquely placed to help BAE understand its customers' needs.
BAE's Veterans Advisory Committee (VAC) was designed to provide advice and governance to company leadership and employees on the issues unique to veteran employees and their families today and into the future. Since its establishment, the committee has instigated several initiatives to ensure BAE Systems Australia can attract, recruit, transition and retain the best veteran talent. The committee’s efforts were formally recognized when BAE Systems Australia was awarded the Veterans' (Large) Employer of the Year at the Prime Minister’s Veterans’ Employment Awards in 2021. In this session, BAE will share its learnings and advice for other organizations seeking to unlock the potential of veterans.
Panelists
Sultan Camp is a serial military transition specialist and serves as the director of Hampton Roads Workforce Council’s Veterans Employment Centers, the co-chair of the Military and Veterans Executive Committee for Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s Blueprint 2030, and a board member for the Fort Eustis Civic Leaders Association (ECLA). Camp is considered one of the leading global minds on what’s next in military transition, career management and education. He recognizes trends and patterns early to help others understand how these shifts impact markets and career options after leaving the military or as a military spouse. He is a prolific military talent and career strategist with numerous recommendations from flag level officers and has written articles for Military Magazine. His article, “Thank you for Your Military Service…Now Here Are 9 Reasons I Won’t Hire You,” landed 1 million+ views and was featured in Business Insider Magazine.
Camp is a talent acquisition strategist at heart; he builds business talent focused on the military community. Today, he helps Virginia Values Veterans (V3) Certified and the fastest growing companies in the Hampton Roads region leverage their military talent pipeline through the HRWC’s Hampton Roads Veterans Employment Centers, which has offices in Norfolk and Newport News, Virginia. In addition to running multiple HRVEC’s, Camp hosts quarterly employer consortiums which CHROs, vice presidents, and senior human resource managers gain access to exclusive strategies to access, attract and retain military talent. He is a LinkedIn influencer and a highly sought-after public speaker. Camp is a graduate of The George Washington and Norfolk State Universities. 
Ken Falke is the founder and chairman of the Boulder Crest Foundation, an organization focused on the teachings of posttraumatic growth. Falke is a 21-year combat veteran of the U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) community and retired Master Chief Petty Officer. He is passionate about taking care of his fellow combat veterans and their family members. A serial entrepreneur, Falke is highly respected around the world as an innovative and forward-thinking leader on the subjects of wounded warrior care, military and veteran transition, counterterrorism, military training, and innovative technology development. Falke spends the majority of his time educating the public and private sectors on the issues surrounding the long-term care of our returning military personnel and their families from the last 20 years of war. As part of this effort, Ken authored, "Struggle Well: Thriving in the Aftermath of Trauma."
Rich Fitzgerald is the chief operations officer of SMTC Corporation, where he leads global operations, engineering, lean and supply chain in the electronics manufacturing sector. Previously, he held global leadership positions in the design and manufacturing sectors at Avnet Integrated Solutions, Qual-Pro, Team Precision, California Amplifier and Intel Corporation, and honorably served in the U.S. Marine Corps and Marine Reserves with the final rank of captain. Fitzgerald holds a bachelor's degree in organizational development from the University of Maryland and attended the Center for Creative Leadership, LAP.
Jeremy Satchell joined the ARA in 2005, completing a bachelor's degree in business at ADFA in 2007. Upon graduation from the Royal Military College-Duntroon in 2008, he was posted to the 16 AD Regiment and fulfilled numerous regimental roles. Most notably, he was the inaugural troop commander of CRAM-1, the first counter rocket, artillery and mortar task unit deployed to Afghanistan in 2010.
He subsequently posted to SoArty at the Instructor in Gunnery (GBAD) and then on exchange with the British Army as an instructor at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Satchell completed other various staff roles before electing to pursue a civilian career and settle his family in Adelaide. Satchell started with BAE Systems Australia in early 2020, following two years within the South Australian government’s Industry Capability Network (ICN) team. Within ICN, he was responsible for supporting Defence Primes to identify Australian suppliers, in addition to supporting local SMEs with their respective business development activities.
He is a passionate advocate of Australian industry capability, with a day-to-day role of identifying world-leading capabilities and products which have export potential into BAE’s global supply chain. As a veteran of the Australian Army, Satchell is proud to support the development and delivery of world-class capability to troops, albeit from behind the scenes within the industry. He continues to serve as a reservist within 16th Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery. He and his wife share a young daughter and son. He is a proud ambassador for Soldier On and the current chair of BAE’s Veteran Advisory Committee.
Moderator
Barry McCarthy is a past president of AME Australia. Previously, he was the plant manager and continuous improvement manager at Goodman Fielder. He has also worked with the manufacturing, sales and corporate arms of Toyota in Australia. McCarthy has implemented continuous improvement in food processing, manufacturing, packaging, printing and front-of-house food service and management. He holds a degree in civil engineering, a master’s in applied positive psychology, a graduate diploma in business, a diploma of training and assessment and a diploma in competitive systems and practices.
Companies
Transforming lives through training, Boulder Crest Foundation programs teach participants how to make peace with their past, live in the present, and begin planning for the future. bouldercrest.org
BAE Systems Australia has been supporting the Australian Defence Forces since 1954 in vital areas such as through-life support, security, logistics and systems integration. With versatility across Army, Navy and Air Force, BAE Systems Australia is a proud employer of veterans, with more than 10 percent of its current workforce of 5,000 having served in the military. baesystems.com
