Before entering politics, Jeremy worked in corporate finance for 25 years latterly as Managing Director of Deutsche Bank.

In 2008/9, he served on secondment as senior corporate finance adviser to HM Treasury, assisting them on the UK’s response to the financial crisis.

In July 2018, Jeremy accepted a role in the Government as a member of the Whips’ Office and was promoted to serve as a senior Whip (as “Comptroller of HM Household”) in July 2019.

In December 2019, Jeremy became Parliamentary Secretary in the Cabinet Office with responsibilities for the Government Commercial Function and other cross-Government programmes.
As Minister of State for Defence Procurement, Jeremy is responsible for the Defence Equipment Plan; relations with the defence industry; defence exports; defence science and technology; and defence estates and infrastructure.

Morag Stuart is Director General Commercial at Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S). Her previous roles include Transformation Director/Acquisition Transformation at MOD, and Director General Improvement at (DE&S) and Director of Commercial at MOD.

Jim is the interim Commercial Director, Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA), responsible for setting the commercial direction for the SDA and collaborative engagement of the extended Submarine Supply Chain. His role extends to directing Supplier Intelligence capability and supply chain risk management. His previous role was Commercial Director, Supply Chain, MOD, where he was responsible for the overall supplier and market interface, helping transform MOD’s supplier relationships and improving broader Industry engagement.
Prior to this, he was Transformation Director in the Cabinet Office Government Commercial Function, helping improve the capacity and capability of Commercial Specialists across Government, winning Best People Development Initiative at the CIPs Awards 2018. He’s had a 20-year Commercial career including Commercial Director at Network Rail, the UK's rail infrastructure provider, where his team procured and managed categories as diverse as ballast to business consultancy. For his transformation work at Network Rail, Jim won the CIPs Procurement and Supply Chain Professional of the Year Award in 2013.
Jim will be returning to the post of Commercial Director, Supply Chain before the event in June.

Andy Caldwell is currently Head of the MOD's Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA).  Prior to taking up this role Andy completed the Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) and associated King's College London MA in International Security and Strategy in 2020.  Prior to RCDS Andy worked for the Government Chief Scientific Advisor as Deputy Director Science Policy and during the Covid-19 emergency supported the Civil Contingencies Secretariat in Cabinet Office during the early stages of the pandemic. Before these roles Andy spent three years as Head Scientific Advice, in MOD’s Defence Science and Technology directorate.

Andy has a background in materials engineering and operational analysis having started his career at British Steel.  Moving to Dstl in 1997 Andy’s career has included secondments to the Pentagon 2007-2010 and a tour as Deputy Scientific Advisor to Task Force Helmand in 2011.  Andy was Scientific Adviser to MOD's Security, Policy and Operations directorate 2011-2013, supporting the directorate's responsibilities that included Defence Policy, Defence Engagement with Allies and the Strategic Direction of UK operations. In his early career Andy led Force Structure and Stability Operations analysis at Dstl, co-leading the analysis input into Strategic Defence and Security Review 2010 from DSTL and undertook the role of Account Manager for MOD Head Office 2013-2015.

Andy is a Fellow of the Operations Research Society and has an MSc in Peace Operations from George Mason University’s School of Public Policy. He was awarded the Office of the Secretary of Defense medal for exceptional public service in 2010. 

As one of the first former UK Special Forces members to talk openly to the media and reveal their true identity, Matthew ‘Ollie’ Ollerton has an incredible story to tell. A former Special Forces operative with both the SAS and SBS, Ollie has undertaken operations in some of the most dangerous and remote locations on the planet and is one of the most highly trained fighters in the world.
After leaving school and joining the Royal Marine Commandos, Ollie’s exploits in Northern Ireland Iraq soon earned him recommendation for the SAS. After joining the Special Boat Service, he undertook high profile missions involving hostage rescue, counter narcotics and counter terrorism, amongst other things. Ollie then went on to use his expertise as a private bodyguard where he was responsible for employing and training a 2,000 strong Iraqi guard force, before heading to South-East Asia to command a three man team infiltrating child trafficking rings, a cause that is still close to his heart today.
Once Ollie returned to the UK in 2014 after 13 years overseas, he started developing a concept that would put these years of training and experience to best use and would benefit others. With this, BREAK-POINT was born; a leadership and development course aimed at the public and corporate sector also supporting veterans suffering the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Angela’s Army career spanned 30 years and included tours in the UK, Germany and NI during the ‘Troubles’. One of the very first mothers to re-join after the rules changed in the early 90s, Angela has always cared deeply about helping women progress with a passion for equality of opportunity. After leaving the Army in 2008, she joined PA Consulting, working in the Defence and Security Sector. In 2011, Angela founded Women in Defence UK, best known for its annual Awards, now in their 6^th year, ground-breaking cross defence sector mentoring programme and its collaborative work with the MOD and industry on the Women in Defence Charter.

In addition to Women in Defence UK, Angela is a Senior Advisor to PA Consulting, member of the CMI Women’s Committee, a Vice Patron of the Royal Air Force Air Cadets Council, a Companion of the CMI and a judge for the CMI Management Book of the Year. She has recently reprised her early (Commonwealth Games and Combined Services) athletics career and enjoys sprinting in Masters competitions, albeit much more slowly than in the 1980s.  She was appointed OBE in the New Years’ Honours List 2021 for her services to women who work in the Defence Sector. An exceptionally proud mother of a son and daughter, she is now an equally proud grandmother of two glorious granddaughters!    

Hetti is the CEO of Ploughshare Innovations, the organisation responsible for the commercialisation of Ministry of Defence innovations. It ensures UK Government technology is put to good use, maximises taxpayer-funded research, and delivers wider benefits to society and the economy.

Prior to Ploughshare, Hetti has had a career spanning British Airways, Centrica, BT and Vodafone, leading financial, commercial and transformational change, often enabled by leading edge technology.

Over the last 10 years, she has brought her expertise and collaborative leadership skills into the telecommunications industry, being responsible for delivering the commercial model for Openreach on its establishment, and latterly for the transformation of the Vodafone UK Enterprise business, which works with many of the large UK businesses including public sector such as MOD.

Hetti is committed to leadership for good, as well as good leadership, and is the founder and chair of a domestic abuse charity for children as well as being a Pioneer at Safelives.

Tom O’Byrne BSc, MCIPS is the Head of Supply Chain Development at QinetiQ, responsible for QinetiQ’s overall approach to the development of its global supply chain. He leads a supply chain development team and is responsible for the delivery of its four strategic themes focused on efficient, sustainable, effective and collaborative procurement. Prior to this appointment, Tom was the Provider Network Lead for The Aurora Engineering Partnership, transforming the procurement approach across three partner organisations and wider industry, to drive benefits through the delivery of engineering services.

His career has centred on driving an organisation’s competitive advantage through its supply chain and has included past roles at AWE Plc and Hewlett-Packard. Tom’s professional experiences and skills are underpinned by his solid academic background which includes being a full (chartered) Member of the Charted Institute of Procurement and Supply.

Nigel Joined Lockheed Martin in 1996. He has over 40 years experience in the Aerospace and Defence business in a variety of senior positions. A mechanical and production engineer by training, he has extensive experience within manufacturing operations, production planning, manufacturing control and project management. With significant periods of time being spent in procurement, SCM, materiel management and contract management disciplines. Nigel as also spend periods of heis career supporting business development opportunities. Nigel spent a significant proportion of his career leading LM’s UK Industrial Particiaption function and working directly with the MoD on their Strategic Supply Managemet programme.

Nigel has functional leadership within LMUK for Supply Chain Management (SCM) focused on strategy, policy and governance, he also is the LMUK SME Champion, Supply Chain Director for LMUK’s subsidary business Seabed Resources Development Ltd, Strategic Supplier Management lead with the MoD and coleads LMUK Industrial Development Country Team.

Nigel also has the lead for strategic issues in support of Supply Chain Management within LMUK including aligning the supply network development, HMG functional liaison, Executive Group lead for LMUK in the DCPP (Defence Cyber Security Protection Partnership), trade associations relationships and professional bodies.

Nigel Chaired the UK ADPG (Aerospace and Defence Procurement Group) and remains an active member of this procurement supply chain industry group.

Prior to joining Lockheed Martin Nigel’s last post was Commercial and Strategic Business Director for a medium sized Midlands based aerospace engineering company engaged in mechanical, avionic and engine components sub-systems.

He has extensive experience of working in and with the UK SME community

Nigel is a Fellow (Chartered) of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply.

Dougal is responsible for the identification and development of large long term strategic projects for KBR Government Solutions with the intent of delivering a step change in the growth of the organisation.  Additionally he has responsibility for strategy, communications and marketing across the region.

Dougal joined KBR as a graduate in 1998 initially working on the West Coast Mainline Upgrade Project before returning to Leatherhead to act as the Chief of Staff for the then Government Solutions CEO.  He subsequently went on to work on a range of defence projects from the Heavy Equipment Transporter PFI through to Temporary Deployed Accommodation (TDA) in Iraq as well as being seconded into the Permanent Joint Headquarters, Northwood.  Moving overseas Dougal was part of the successful Yas Island project management team delivering the first Abu Dhabi F1 grand prix before working in the oil and gas industry for a few years where his most recent role was as the head of the KBR Chennai office where he set up KBR’s new office and grew the team from 11 to 350.

Phil joined the Defence Cyber Protection Partnership in November 2017, having previously spent five years as a Computer Security Analyst in Joint Forces Command. Before that he spent ten years developing and supporting applications originally written in the early Windows era. He gained a BSc with the Open University in 2013, is on a local Sea Cadet Management Team and an Ally with the MOD’s LGBT+ Committee.

Chris has spent the last 18 years in various MOD security roles, primarily in the Personnel Security field. For the last 10 years he has been the policy and governance lead for Industry Security and Personnel Security for Defence Equipment & Support and for List X Defence Industry. He is a longstanding fan of Bath Rugby and considers himself a unashamed Science Fiction 'nerd'.

After a degree in Aeromechanical Systems Engineering, Peter completed a PhD in the aerodynamics of insect flight at the Defence College of Management and Technology, Shrivenham in 2008. He joined Dstl to conduct modelling relating to time-sensitive targeting.

He has since worked across a range of areas, mainly related to unmanned air vehicles both large and small, collaborating across UK industry and academia and with international partners.

He was seconded to MOD's Operations Directorate to conduct counter-IED analysis during the closing days of Op HERRICK (Afghanistan), and more recently spent 18 months at the Maritime Warfare Centre working on issues related to the introduction of the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers and the UK's return to a Carrier Strike capability.

Since the end of 2019 Peter has been a regional Innovation Partner for the Defence and Security Accelerator, working across the UK's South East to support DASA's mission of finding and funding exploitable innovation to support UK defence and security quickly and effectively.