Our People
Collectively, Aurizn's team bring world-class and industry leading expertise across science, engineering, technology and project management.
BRETT SANGSTER
Chief EXECUTIVE Officer
Brett is the Chief Executive Officer of Aurizn Group.
Prior to joining Aurizn as our Chief Executive, Brett has carved out an impressive career in law, engineering & construction, professional services and whilst serving with the ADF during a ‘high tempo’ era.
Prior to joining Aurizn, Brett was a Partner at McCullough Robertson Lawyers, responsible for the Defence & National Security Practice Group, McR Defence. Prior to that, Brett was the Managing Director of Downer Defence Services, spearheading its Defence business from 2016, and before that, assuming leadership positions in Downer’s Infrastructure, Engineering and Energy divisions.
Graduating from Duntroon in 1999, Brett was an Army Officer where he spent much of his time within the Special Operations Command, initially in an intelligence function and later as a legal officer. Brett was commended for his exceptional service on operational deployments in 2011.
As we continue to develop our Defence technology capabilities, Brett brings a wealth of operational, commercial and legal experience to his role with Aurizn Group.
Ganen Ganeswaran
Executive Director
Ganen is a founder and Executive Director at Aurizn and provides strategic, financial and operational leadership for the group defence, space and national security business. He also sits on the Aurizn Board.
Ganen co-founded elmTEK and created a highly reputable sovereign defence science and technology business that merged with Consilium Technology in 2022 to create Aurizn.
For more than a decade, Ganen has helped Defence on critical projects solve platform and mission survivability challenges through better approaches to sensor and system performance characterisation and validation, improved tactics and enhanced signature prediction capabilities.
At Aurizn, Ganen is focused on scaling the Defence business, working collaboratively with our customers and partners to deliver solutions through novel approaches and asymmetric technology to solve complex problems.
He holds an MBA, Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical & Electronic) (Hons) and Bachelor of Science (IT) from the University of WA.
Bjorn Wharff
Executive Director
Bjorn is a founder and Executive Director at Aurizn and provides strategic leadership to the key defence customer and campaign portfolios for the business. Bjorn also sits on the Aurizn Board.
As co-founder of elmTEK, which merged with Consilium Technology in 2022, Bjorn brings deep expertise in science and technology, simulation, experimentation and capability development, and has successfully led a number of strategic partnerships and capabilities with Defence, delivering increased value to customers and a sustained growth trajectory for the business.
With a rich history founded in technical management and senior consulting in Defence and Defence Industry, Bjorn has presided over a number of complex programs in the national and international arena across Cyber, Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and C5ISREW domains.
Martin Green
Chief Capability Officer
An experienced Engineering Manager, Martin has more than 25 years of experience in delivering complex projects.
With a background in Software, Systems and System Safety engineering and extensive experience in managing engineering teams, Martin provides engineering governance and assurance across Aurizn’s engineering projects to ensure successful delivery on clients’ requirements. This includes the management of engineering resources, systems and tools.
Martin is responsible for the maintenance and accreditation of the company Quality Management and Work Health and Safety systems.
He has a Bachelor of Science (Computing), University of Bolton (UK).
Ian Langford
Chief Strategy Officer
Ian is responsible for Aurizn’s strategic implementation and is an experienced senior leader with a demonstrated history of working in the national security sector. Skilled in Leadership, Risk Management, Strategic Planning, Command & Control, and Project Management.
Ian is also a strong community and social services professional with a Doctor of Philosophy - PhD focused in Strategic Studies from Deakin University. Security clearance maintained and accredited.
Nick Fuggle
CHIEF Financial OFFICER
Nick is the Chief Financial Officer for the Aurizn Group.
Nick brings financial and commercial insight to the team and supports the delivery of the Group's integration, strategy and growth objectives.
A Chartered Accountant, Nick started his career as an auditor with Price Waterhouse Coopers in London, and has also held senior financial and commercial roles with the Walt Disney Company and Cobham plc, a UK listed defence and aerospace company.
Nick has a BA (Hons) History and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants UK.
Dr Cassandra Trumble
Chief People Officer
Cass is versatile, grounded and commercially focussed with a STEM career path and life experiences that drew her into the people aspects of business and leadership.
She has 25 years of experience working across Senior Leadership in Human Resources, Consulting, Commercial and Clinical Practice roles across Australia and Asia Pacific.
At Aurizn, Cass is passionate about clever people coming together to contribute their talents, create, build, solve and deliver our purpose.
Experienced across energy, technology, health and scientific sectors across Asia Pacific regions.
Bachelor of Veterinary Science from the University of Melbourne and Masters of Business, majoring in Human Resources from the Melbourne Business School.
Nick Cooper
Chief Information Officer
Nick is responsible for Aurizn’s internal IT and operations and program management for our Defence clients.
He has over 20 years of technology and leadership experience with a focus on Defence. He has held roles covering software engineering, technical lead and project management, and has deep technology & architecture expertise.
Nick has a Bachelor of Computer and Information Science (Programming, Business) from University of South Australia, and is PRINCE2 and Scrum Master certified.
Lee Blucher
Executive General Manager – Defence
A passionate leader with a focus on culture and team building, Lee is responsible for managing the daily operations of Aurizn’s defence business.
This includes strategic planning and driving organisational change, policy development, resource management, contract management, recruitment and onboarding and financial reporting and budgeting.
Lee has a Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical & Electronic) (Hons), Flinders University and a Diploma of Management from the University of South Australia.
Ben SchuLtz
Executive General Manager - Enterprise
Ben is Aurizn’s AI Lead, driving innovation and the implementation of real-world solutions for clients.
As an experienced engineering manager, Ben is skilled in leading and inspiring high performing teams to deliver intelligent solutions in the domains of deep learning computer vision, autonomous forecasting, NLP and electronic signal classification.
With his strong technical background and expertise in Machine Learning Algorithms and AI, he is adept at technical scope liaison, understanding customer needs and delivering tailored solutions across mining and resources, defence and manufacturing.
Ben has a Bachelor of Engineering (Biomedical) and Masters of Engineering from Flinders University (First Class Honours and Engineering Medal for Best Performing Graduate).
Martin De Domenico
Executive General Manager – McR Defence
Martin leads Aurizn's multi-disciplinary team of consultants and advisors with diverse backgrounds and experiences in the defence, national security, and critical infrastructure sectors.
His team provide tailored solutions to our clients' complex and strategic challenges, leveraging the team's deep understanding of the policy, legal, and operational environments.
He has over 20 years of public policy, risk/governance, and security leadership experience, with a career foundation in disaster response and strategic risk.
A qualified lawyer and a cybersecurity expert, he is passionate about protecting Australia's sovereignty, security, and resilience.
Dr Peter Amerl
Chief Scientist
He provides highly technical and scientific governance guidance and expertise, from supporting the R&D roadmap, science strategy, IP strategy and leading the development of scientific solutions across the business.
Peter is highly experienced in business process improvement, people management, instrumentation modelling and development, and scientific data analysis.
He is also experienced in electro optic detector hardware development, multiband electro optic (EO) simulation, developing detection algorithms, modelling of EO countermeasures and LiDAR applications, space instrumentation design, nuclear analyser design, ultrasonic analyser design and microwave measurements.
Peter has a Bachelor of Science (Astrophysics & Physics), Masters of Science (Physics, Microwave Spectroscopy) and Doctor of Philosophy (Physics – Mass Spectrometry) from the University of Calgary.
Sarah Hibbard
Chief Commercial Officer
Sarah is the Chief Commercial Officer at Aurizn.
She is responsible for customer-facing interfaces and ensuring that Aurizn’s functions and teams are aligned to meet strategic commercial objectives.
Sarah also leads the globally licensed Infinite Studio product and development team.
Her experience spans strategy, business development, marketing, sales, branding and customer experience and operations.
Sarah holds a Master of Psychology (Organisational and Human Factors), Bachelor of Law (Hons), First Class Honours in Psychology, and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Adelaide. She is also a Registered Psychologist and Industry Leaders Fund (ILF) Scholar.
RAFAEL KARGREN
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER – ENTERPRISE
Rafael (Raf) is an accomplished leader with over 30 years of experience in operations and sales across multiple high-impact industries, including defence, software development, telecommunications, and artificial intelligence/machine learning. Known for his strategic insight and results-driven leadership, Raf has successfully led diverse teams and driven growth in complex, rapidly evolving markets.
His expertise bridges the technical and operational aspects of business, making him a trusted advisor and dynamic force in advancing industry innovation. Raf’s commitment to excellence continues to inspire, as he pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in today’s tech-driven world.
View on LinkedIn
Mike Holmes
Manager Commercial Business Development and Chief Security Officer
Mike is responsible for commercial and business development functions and chief of company security.
As a business development executive with over 30 years’ experience in defence electronics, Mike has worked in both government and industry positions in Australia.
He is an active contributor to various Australian Defence related industry forums and associations, including four years with the French-Australia Chamber of Commerce and is currently a member of the AIDN SA state committee.
Mike holds a Master’s in Electrical & Electronic Engineering, is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia in 2011 and a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD).
Mark McDonnell
Machine Learning Specialist
Mark is Aurizn’s AI Capability Lead and Machine Learning Specialist.
He ensures Aurizn's AI capabilities and technology continue to be at the cutting edge, enabling us to create innovative new solutions for clients.
Mark mentors Aurizn’s team of data scientists and works with clients to establish issues and identify methods to create successful outcomes.
As well as leading a specialist Machine Learning research laboratory at the University of South Australia, Mark has consulted on and delivered Machine Learning to the mining, sports, agriculture, health, manufacturing, defence and finance sectors
He has a PhD in Electronic Engineering and Applied Mathematics from the University of Adelaide.
In the spirit of reconciliation, Aurizn acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past, present and emerging and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.
Company
Expertise
Products
Industries
©2023 Aurizn, All rights reserved | Privacy Policy | Sitemap