April 2019 marks WA DEFENCE REVIEW‘s second anniversary of operation, as Australia’s newest defence communications platform. Following on the launch of the inaugural WA DEFENCE REVIEW Annual Publication in October 2018, WA DEFENCE REVIEW now offers a unique and comprehensive suite of capabilities catering for both WA’s and Australia’s defence sector. Our focus is geared to covering Australian defence and industry from a West Coast perspective.
Since our initial launch in April 2017 WA DEFENCE REVIEW has provided wide-ranging and unprecedented coverage for WA’s defence sector. We have achieved a number of key milestones in establishing our brand as the leading defence sector communication and events platform in the West of the Australian continent. A summary of our salient accomplishments are as follows:
• Annual Publication: Launched in October 2018, the WA DEFENCE REVIEW Annual Publication is the first of its kind for WA – offering new insights through in-depth analysis, commentary and exclusive interviews pertaining to WA’s defence sector, Indo-Pacific and Indian Ocean security, and the security of northern Australia, alongside a range of other topical subject matter that is of national and international significance.
The Annual Publication is distributed Australia-wide, including overseas in New Zealand, to Defence and industry specialists in both hard and soft copy. It encompasses a print run of 4000 hardcopies, while the online version is widely circulated via social media and direct, vetted email distribution to an approximate readership of 10,000 Defence and industry professionals. The inaugural Annual Publication received strong support from industry with a total of 52 advertisements.
It is noted that we distributed around 700 copies at our inaugural soft launch at the WA Indo-Pacific Defence Conference on 30 October 2018 and have subsequently distributed thousands of hardcopies to the defence sectors across all states and territories in Australia (and New Zealand). WA DEFENCE REVIEW is now in the midst of planning for our 2019 Annual Publication to coincide with the second WA Indo Pacific Defence Conference scheduled for August 2019 and look forward to producing an even more impressive publication.
• Events Program: Our high-profile events program emphasises themed events on specialised topics that include speaker and panel discussion events, exclusive Chatham House roundtable discussions (known as the Strategy, Defence & Industry Dialogue), industry site visits and VIP cocktail functions. Thus far, WA DEFENCE REVIEW has hosted 16 high-profile events that have received consistently high levels of support and sponsorship from industry and cumulatively attracted around 1000 senior professionals from across the spectrum of academia, Defence, government and industry.
To date WA DEFENCE REVIEW has hosted four high profile speaker events addressing topics such as “The Cutting Edge: Future of Special Operations and Industry Innovation“, “Closing the Gap: Future of Defence and Indigenous Employment“, “Synergies with the Defence and Resources Sectors: Prospects for Collaboration” and “Future of Defence Innovation and Start-Ups: Insights from WA Industry“; three invite-only Strategy, Defence & Industry Dialogue roundtables in collaboration with the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce, University of Western Australia and the City of Perth; and seven industry site visits encompassing the AMC Floating Dock, BAE Systems Henderson shipyard, JFD Bibra Lake facility, Hofmann Engineering Bassendean facility, Australian Army Museum of Western Australia and the coveted SAS Historical Collection. Having built a proven track record of organising and hosting high profile, stimulating and unique defence sector events, you can expect to see more such events being held in 2019. Watch this space!
• Video Channel: The WA DEFENCE REVIEW Video Channel has contributed to enhancing WA’s collective voice and developed a reputation for producing high profile, thought provoking and interesting original content through a variety of professionally edited and broadcast quality video products. The platform has generated substantial coverage for WA’s defence sector nationally and internationally and has become integral to merging the West Coast defence sector into the national defence conversation. The Video Channel has provided significant visibility to both WA’s and Australia’s defence sector with over 7000 views since early 2018 and attracts over 21 hours of viewing time per month.
• Policy Blog: The WA DEFENCE REVIEW Policy Blog is a timely and effective defence sector communication medium that publishes original commentary from an array of prominent Australian decision-makers and thought leaders across the spectrum of academia, Defence, government and industry in Australia.
• Distribution List and Social Media Profile: WA DEFENCE REVIEW possesses the largest distribution list of defence sector and allied industry professionals in WA, comprising of a network of over 10,000 professionals across social media and direct, vetted email distribution. Similarly, our social media presence via Twitter @WADefence and via the Linkedin company page has steadily grown in size, stature and outreach.
A prime example of this is the WA Defence Sector Forum, which was launched in late 2016 and has since grown exponentially to become the second-largest LinkedIn defence group in Australia. The Forum is a vetted and moderated LinkedIn group composed of nearly 1000 members and serves as a trusted platform to promote conversation on matters pertaining to defence and industry affairs across Australia.
Finally, we will soon launch the WA DEFENCE REVIEW Monthly Newsletter, which will enable more effective outreach and communication with the defence sector in WA and across Australia, further adding to WA’s value proposition. If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to register via our website to be included on our email distribution list.
In summation, based on the critical feedback and ongoing support that we have galvanised from Australia’s defence sector, we are confident that WA DEFENCE REVIEW shall continue to grow from strength to strength. In 2019 and beyond, WA DEFENCE REVIEW shall look to consolidating our profile across Australia and in select overseas markets. The comprehensive suite of capabilities that WA DEFENCE REVIEW now possesses has enabled the State to be more effective and competitive nationally. I look forward to working in collaboration with all the State’s key actors, and Australian defence industry more generally, to collectively achieve outcomes for Australia’s national interest.
