ABSTRACT
Rapid changes in global risk, a global pandemic, and an increasingly complex threat landscape are forcing defence and intelligence organisations to evolve. National security leaders tell us that digital technologies are the “connective tissue” that forces require to influence and harness the information domain. This requires defence organizations to embrace digital transformation, contemporary technologies, and modern development methods–as well as evolve their policies and processes to enable interoperability amongst partner nations and real transformation to occur.
The future operating environment will be so dynamic that defence and intelligence organizations will need to be capable of operating in coalitions where the sharing of information, data, intelligence and technologies will be essential to outperforming an ever-evolving adversary. Organisations that are interoperable with each other across multi-national, multi-agency and multi-domain boundaries that can also respond with agility and quickly leverage new technologies to aid their need to collect, analyse, make sense of, and disseminate massive amounts of data (across the continuum from the edge to the HQ) will gain decision superiority.
This session will take the form of a ‘fireside chat’ with three of Microsoft’s Defence and Intelligence industry experts from Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States who will shine a light on these new and emerging capabilities that are available to defence and intelligence organisations to meet their mission objectives and achieve interoperability with coalition partners.
BIOGRAPHY
Jonathon (Jono) Beesley joined Microsoft’s World Wide Public Sector Defense and Intelligence Leadership Team in February 2021 after a 32 year career in the Australian Defence Force where he led numerous multi-disciplinary organisations in complex national security environments. In his role at Microsoft he is responsible for supporting and enabling Microsoft subsidiaries and partners across the globe to deliver solutions to Defence and Intelligence organisations to improve operations and protect national security.

BIOGRAPHY
As Microsoft’s Industry Executive for Defence and Intelligence, Carly understands the industry trends and problems Defence and Intelligence agencies face, through the lens of how technology can be applied to transform and improve operations and determining innovative ways to solve those problems. She works with her local Microsoft team, the global Defence and Intelligence unit as well as Microsoft’s industry partners, such as military systems integrators, to envision and deliver the best outcome for empowering the people that protect and defend Australia to achieve more. That may be through digital transformation, solving National Security issues with artificial intelligence, analytics and cloud solutions; getting the right information to the people from headquarters to the field when and where they need it; enabling secure collaboration across entities and agencies; working on modernising environments and facilities and using mixed reality to remotely assist with maintenance, training and information exchange. Also through working with our emerging space sector to advance Australia's strategic position.
Carly has worked in the Defence and Intelligence sector for over 9 years. She is an advisor to and holds membership with key Defence industry associations and has 25+ years’ experience working for large Multi-National organisations to bring technology and innovation to major programs across multiple industries.

BIOGRAPHY
Josh is a Senior Program Manager for Azure Space at Microsoft. Josh works in partnership with the Australian space sector to solve their most challenging problems using cloud computing, global connectivity, and space technologies. Josh has a background in the Australian Air Force, working in aviation and space roles. Most recently, Josh completed a space science masters in Canada and worked in Air Force Headquarters in a broad range of roles, covering research, program management, international policy and Ministerial guidance.

BIOGRAPHY
Arthur Thomas (A.T.) Ball has served for nine years as the Senior Director in Asia for Microsoft’s Defense and Intelligence (D&I) business. A.T. joined Microsoft after a distinguished career in the United States Army where his career was marked by service and operations with military, intelligence and homeland security organizations. A.T.’s primary role for Microsoft is to own and execute, in partnership with the field teams in subsidiaries across the region, the World- Wide D&I industry strategies and business plan across Asia. He lives and works out of Singapore and travels extensively to meet with D&I entities and Microsoft partners in the region.
Prior to his arrival at Microsoft, A.T. was a career military officer and aviator. His 30-year military career included challenging command, staff, and special operations leadership assignments which included leading operational elements in combat, domestic security and disaster responses. He culminated his career as the Deputy Chief of Staff, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). USINDOPACOM consists of over 330,000 U.S. military personnel from all services, spanning half the globe and containing 7 of the world’s 10 largest military powers. It is the primary headquarters (HQ) for maintaining critical security relationships between the US and 36 nations in the Pacific, as well as, responding to natural and man-made disasters across the region.
Previous assignments included serving as the Chief of Staff, U.S. Army Pacific. In this capacity, he led the digital transformation of a legacy, non-deployable Theater Army HQ into an operational Command and Control node with a deployable, fully networked Command Post. He was also charged with organizing and leading a standing Joint Task Force to respond to natural or manmade disasters and other intelligence-based threats to the homeland for all US states, territorial possessions in the Pacific, as well as, the newly independent Compact Nations of Palau, FSM and RMI. His career is also uniquely populated with time spent seconded to other government agencies and orchestrating multi-agency security operations in support of foreign and domestic special activities.
A distinguished aviator and experimental test pilot, A.T. developed extensive operational knowledge and expertise while partnering with military forces and intelligence forces around the globe. He commanded the 25th Infantry Division’s Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB), deploying to Iraq for a 15-month combat tour. While deployed, he led the tactical systems engineering effort to develop a composite organization of nonstandard manned and unmanned aircraft, named “Task Force ODIN,” utilizing “network centric” warfare to great effects. His work in this field led to the IT industry’s Wired Magazine naming him as one of the top 15 people President Obama should speak to before taking office in a feature article in 2008.
A.T. Ball participated in multiple international humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts around the globe while in uniform, highlighted by leading the US multi-agency response to the Fukishima disaster in Japan. He is an experienced operational practitioner in combat operations, planning, intelligence, operations center and staff management, disaster management and risk management.