Jeff MacLeod

Founder, President, CEO & Board member

Jeff is a former Canadian RCEME officer and served as System Engineer for three major Army Crown Projects before moving to the private sector. For almost twenty years he was General Manager of Diemaco/ Colt Canada. He is an expert in the Small Arms and Soldier Systems field as well as all aspects of manufacturing. He formed KWESST in 2017 to pursue opportunities in the networking and digitization of legacy and future weapons systems.

David E. Luxton

Executive Chairman

David is a recognized entrepreneur in the defence and security industry. He was formerly an infantry officer and senior official with the Canadian and British governments before leading the global build-out of successive defence and security companies, including Simunition, the world leader in simulated munitions for close-quarters combat training. He led the build-out of Allen- Vanguard, which became a world leader in Counter-IED solutions, where he remains Chairman. He is also former Chairman of United Tactical Systems, a world leader in non-lethal munitions systems.

Steven Archambault, CPA, CA

CFO

Mr. Archambault brings a wealth of international finance experience to KWESST. With 15 years of public company experience, he has deep functional expertise and technical knowledge in all aspects of corporate finance, financial planning, and accounting, in addition to merger and acquisitions.

Jeff Dunn

U.S. Market Development

Jeff is former COO of ARTEMIS, Inc., the Naval Service Lead for Rapid Prototyping at Booz Allen Hamilton, and Director Strategic Development at General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. Military service awards include a Bronze Star, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Navy & Marine Corps Commendation Medal and several Navy & Marine Corps Achievement Medals. Jeff spent 20 years as a U.S. Marine AV-8B Harrier pilot & mission commander.

Warren Downing

Director, Innovation

Warren spent fifteen years in the Royal Australian Air Force. He then transitioned to industry, building on his military experience and spent more than twenty years in senior Systems Engineering and Program Management roles with major defence companies such as CAE Inc., Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, DRS Technologies and Colt Canada. At KWESST he leads the technical innovation team of senior engineers.

Paul Fortin

Incoming director

Paul has held senior business development positions within two of Canada’s largest law firms - Gowlings WLG and more recently Borden Ladner Gervais LLP where he was responsible for the firm’s defense and security as well as international expansion strategies which encompassed Asia Pacific, United Kingdom, and the United States. His network includes exceptionally strong ties to the defense community and diplomatic defense attaché network, notably with the USA (Air Force, Army, Navy, USMC) , 5 Eyes, Korean, Ukrainian, Israeli and NATO and Middle Eastern (Gulf States).

Paul Mangano

incoming director

Paul is a thirty-four-year veteran of the high-tech sector. He has an MBA in High Technology from Northeastern University and a BA in Economics from Harvard. In 2015, he established Surculus Advisors, a management advisory firm providing strategic advice and leadership to SME companies in the high-tech sector including aerospace and defense. Prior to forming Surculus Advisors, Paul was a Division President at L-3 Communications (NYSE: LLL).

He is former President and Chief Operating Officer of Proterion Corporation.

John McCoach

incoming director

John McCoach retired from full time employment in 2016. At that time he was President, TSX Venture Exchange; a role he held for seven years. John is a director of the Capital Markets Authority Implementation Organization. CMAIO is tasked by The Government of Canada, six provinces and one territory to create a pan Canadian securities commission. He is also the Lead Director, Liberty Defense Holding Ltd. John was a director, and Interim CEO, of Nautilus Minerals Inc. John is also a director of the Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue.