Greg Reid, Clearbox
Systems Managing Director; Joe North, Lockheed
Martin Australia and New Zealand Chief
Executive; Jeremy Hallett, Clearbox Systems
Executive Director.
CANBERRA, 16 September 2020: As part of
its ongoing commitment to the development of Australian
industry capability, Lockheed Martin Australia has
confirmed Australian communications networks and
electromagnetic spectrum operations technology leader Clearbox Systems as the inaugural
international graduate of the Mentor
Protégé Program (MPP).
As the first company outside of the United States (US) to
participate in, and complete, the MPP, Clearbox Systems
received extensive mentoring from top Lockheed Martin
executives in Australia and the US over a 13-month
period, covering best practice human resource processes,
business ethics, product management, competitive
intelligence and cyber security readiness.
Lockheed Martin Australia Chief Executive Joe North
presented Clearbox Systems Executive Director, Jeremy
Hallett, with a commemorative plaque acknowledging the
achievement at Lockheed Martin’s state-of-the-art
Endeavour Centre, Canberra. He congratulated Mr. Hallett
and the Clearbox team, referencing the MPP as a further
example of the company’s ability to support and develop
Australian defence industry capability.
“As an Australian defence prime we take our
responsibility to provide tools to enable the rapid
growth of innovative Australian companies through
improved capacity and capability very seriously,” he
said. “The Mentor Protégé Program is as intense as it is
extensive, and we congratulate Clearbox Systems as the
program’s inaugural international industry graduate,” he
said.
“We are proud to contribute to Australia’s sovereign
defence capabilities and the Mentor Protégé Program will
provide further opportunities to partner with local
industry and boost skills while creating jobs and
providing greater access to global supply chains.”
Commenting at the Canberra event, Jeremy Hallett,
Executive Director, Clearbox Systems thanked the
Lockheed Martin mentors and highlighted the
extraordinary breadth of knowledge his team had been
exposed to over the 13-month program.
“We are proud to be the first company outside of the US
to complete the prestigious Lockheed Martin Mentor
Protégé Program. It was a privilege to be selected and
I am extremely grateful to the Lockheed Martin team for
their support and willingness to increase our capacity
with the capabilities we need to make us more
internationally competitive,” he said. “Clearbox Systems
has already started to benefit from the program and, as
we have more than doubled our workforce and continue to
innovate with new intelligence, surveillance,
reconnaissance and electronic warfare and space domain
awareness technologies, we look forward to the
possibility of future partnership opportunities with
Lockheed Martin.”
Lockheed Martin Australia’s Head of Industrial
Development, Christopher Hess, explained the company’s
approach to industry development and noted the company
is aiming to allow more Australian companies to benefit
from the MPP.
“When looking for future technology partners, Lockheed
Martin fundamentally invests in enhancing the
capabilities of innovative companies, and Clearbox
Systems is a case in point,” he said. “It’s not enough
to just have a great idea or product, we need partners
that have the business acumen to grow innovative,
sustainable businesses that can compete for Global
Supply Chain contracts, and the MPP has already helped
Clearbox Systems to achieve just that.”
Lockheed Martin Australia is committed to the further
development of Australia’s world-class sovereign defence
industry capability. This will include initiatives such
as the MPP to continue to support the upskilling of
small-to-medium enterprises so they can be competitive
on the global stage.
