Join us as DEF's Executive Director sits with Dr. Marina Theodotou, Lolita Horne and Eric Farraro of DAU! Using industry and academic research, and insights from the workforce, the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) created the Innovation Competencies and Skills Model. The model includes a self-assessment and personalized learning recommendations based on assessment results. This video introduces viewers to several members of the Innovate to Win (Phase I ) team,  describes the Innovate...

The Masked Innovator is a new take on Podcasts from the Defense Entrepreneurs Forum! Take a listen and see if you can figure out who the guests are before the end! No self promotions, no sales pitches, just honest opinions on the topic of innovation within the Department of Defense!

Come learn how to navigate the challenging world of SBIR's and STTR's!

DEF's executive director Trish Martinelli talks with Heath Murray, the Indiana Agora lead, about the recent DEF Drink and Think and the importance of local Agoras in the national DEF ecosystem. Trish and Heath also discussed the unique nature of the DEF community and how it connects and empowers innovative thinkers in the national security space.

DEF's executive director Trish Martinelli talks with Nicholas Marchand, the lead for the 757 Agora. Nick hosted one of many DEF events on November 10, 2022, now unofficially known as National DEF Day.  Trish and Nick discussed the 757 Agora, its unique position in the national security ecosystem, and the value local Agoras add to DEF's mission to inspire, connect, and empower.

DEF's executive director Trish Martinelli talks with Alex Gorsuch, the Chicago Agora lead, about his recent DEFx event, the Chicago entrepreneurial ecosystem, and his company Ascent. Trish and Alex also discuss future plans for the Chicago Agora and for DEF overall, and why individuals interested in the national security innovation space should get involved.

DEF's executive director Trish Martinelli talks with Alexis Bonnell about her time as a facilitator at I Am Remarkable, a Google project seeking to inspire and empower working people to take pride in their achievements. This kind of empowerment is a critical component to true success and fulfillment in both the defense and innovation spheres. 

The National Security Innovation Network (NSIN “Esign”) runs a program called “Foundry” that matches DOD technology with Entrepreneurs with the goal of creating private entities to sell the DOD technology to both the commercial and public/DoD sector.   Featuring: Mark Anholt – Program Manager of Foundry, can speak to program, selection critea, historical successes, and goals to increase women’s participation Trish Martinelli – Executive Director of DEF, Regional Director at NSIN Ellen...

On January 31st, 2022 we hosted our first Agora Launch party. An event where we 'unboxed' the Agora-In-A-Box tool and demonstrated the process it takes to start a new Agora. We had a great turnout and are excited to see how many Agora will emerge in the coming months.  If you weren't able to attend you can now listen to the recording from the event. If you have any questions or are interested in starting an Agora in your city shoot us an email to [email protected].

On the 29th of January as another big storm bore down on the Northeast, the Defense Entrepreneurs Forum (DEF) held it’s quarterly volunteer summit, and the first Summit under the new Executive Director Trish Martinelli. More than 15 volunteers, leaders, staff, past and present Executive Directors, and DEF Board members kicked off the Summit and invested 4 hours in charting the way ahead for DEF in 2022. The meeting was led by Lee Gimpel by Better Meetings. If you are interested in...

This episode features another monthly gathering of the JSOFT Community, the Federal DevSecOps Community of Practice. During this episode, JSOFT highlights the “Sec” in DevSecOps with a powerhouse crew of cloud-native security experts talking about their experiences working in the security space with the Federal Government. Our panel features Chris Hughes, Principal Cybersecurity Engineer, Rise8; Steve White, Cloud Security Advisor, Oracle; Alex Barbato, Modern Compliance Architect, vmware;...

This episode features another monthly gathering of the JSOFT Community, the Federal DevSecOps Community of Practice. This episode features Lt Col Max Reele, Chief of Operations and Deputy Commander of Kessel Run. Lt Col Reele shares his journey being at the forefront of DoD digital transformation and how Kessel Run is growing. About DEF The mission of the Defense Entrepreneurs Forum is to inspire, connect and empower people by convening events, forging partnerships and delivering tangible...

DEF founding member and long-time champion Mark Jacobsen just published a new book: “Eating Glass: the Inner Journey Through Failure and Renewal.” Join us to hear a fireside chat with Mark about his work and these tough, meaningful themes for all entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and humans. Mark D. Jacobsen is an Air Force officer and professor of strategy and innovation. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Stanford University and has spent his career building and leading teams to tackle...

For the last several years, DEF has hosted an evening event in conjunction with NVIDIA’s flagship annual conference, GTC 21. Join NVIDIA’s Anthony Robbins (a long-time friend and champion of DEF) for a roundtable with our Board of Directors. DEF’s BOD includes Morgan Plummer, Jen Sovada, Josh Marcuse, Meagan Metzger, Chris Lynch, Evanna Hu, Ian Eishen, and Joy Shanaberger. About DEF The mission of the Defense Entrepreneurs Forum is to inspire, connect and empower people by convening...

This podcast is a recording from the Bay Area Agora kickoff where Steve Blank joined us for a fireside chat and Q&A session covering: - how to better align national security and commercial incentive structures - a framework for creating an innovation overlay to the acquisition process - and how DEF can drive these changes at the operational level About DEF The mission of the Defense Entrepreneurs Forum is to inspire, connect and empower people by convening events, forging partnerships...

It's been a year since we last interviewed Justin Lynch as part of the DEF Boston - AI Strategy & Defense event. The NSCAI has completed their final report, and will now join a roundtable discussion with DEF Boston Lead Adam Beal and DEF Executive Director Michael Madrid. During the roundtable, Justin and Courtney will share key findings from their research, as well as information on how the DEF community can help promote action on critical initiatives to ensure the U.S. is prepared to...

During this session of the DEF Digital Leadership Series, Mark Pushinsky shares how Value Steam Mapping helps leaders solve complex problems by deconstructing their operating environment to find opportunities for disruptive impact. Value stream maps help leaders identify and eliminate waste, thereby enhancing operational speed, mission impact, and resource utilization.

In case you missed it... hear from leaders within the DOD. Listen to we are doing with Additive Manufacturing and where we are headed in the future! this is the first part of a monthly series dedicated to increasing communications between organizations within the Department of Defense! **This is a recording from a live event** Register for next months event to hear from AM operators in field: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/def-additive-manufacturing-in-the-dod-tickets-138636564697 About...

This episode of DEF's Tech Leader series helps national security innovators apply data science and AI to achieve mission outcomes.  COL Benigni, a chief data scientist at US Special Operations Command, guides DEF listeners towards that goal by sharing insights from applying these capabilities at the tactical edge. COL Benigni offers a models for applying data science to tactical challenges, explains areas of opportunity for emerging leaders, and imparts best practices for operational...

This Cornerstones Workshop looked at the two parties of a startup transaction: the investor and entrepreneurs. Raising capital for most startup founders is a tricky, potentially stressful undertaking. Knowing some common practices – and insider’s tips – can make the journey much less painful. We will give a brief overview of how angel investing works. On the entrepreneurs side, we will discuss key strategies for obtaining angel investments and developing positive relationships with angel...

Jordan Levine, a Partner at Dynamic Ideas, discusses analytics for national security at a DEF Washington DC event. In addition to his depth of knowledge, Jordan developed an analytics training product that is being piloted under an AFWERX SBIR contract for the entire DoD. Here's a description of that course: ----------------- You can't look an algorithm in the eye. Because you can't look an algorithm in the eye, leaders must know how to inspect and audit algorithms. We have developed our...

In this conversation, Gregory Galle and Daniel covered just about everything, beginning with Greg's origins in communication design, how he co-founded the company Solve Next (previously Future), his experience and approaches developing and applying the facilitated discovery and design framework Think Wrong, and loads of insights about facilitation, innovation, being human-centered, before getting into Greg's origins as a design-minded innovator.    Agitare is a community built of...

This epsisode is exciting  for startups and emerging companies focused on defense and national security to learn from an expert in pricing. Finding dual-use viability or an appropriate market approach when working with government is challenging, and government employees working with emerging companies will also benefit from learning about their experiences and pain points. Ed Lee is a pricing expert and CEO of HelloAdvisr, a growth consultancy working with startup leadership teams to design...