Company links new role to AUKUS and DISP workforce pressure
WorkSec has appointed Shawn Donaldson as its inaugural general manager, as rising personnel security governance requirements increase demand for specialist support across Australia’s defence, intelligence and critical industry sectors.
The Adelaide-based company announced the appointment on 3 September 2026. It tied the move to faster AUKUS activity and the expansion of domestic defence capability under the Defence Industry Security Program, known as DISP.
According to WorkSec, those changes are putting pressure on sovereign supply chains, defence prime contractors and government agencies to onboard and manage trusted workforces more quickly. The company said organisations now face more complex personnel security, governance and assurance requirements.
Donaldson will focus on strengthening WorkSec’s operational foundations, improving service delivery systems and scaling its team as the business grows nationally.
He brings more than 25 years of senior leadership experience across technology, corporate operations and professional services. WorkSec said his background includes senior executive, service delivery, general manager and chief executive roles.
AUKUS and DISP lift workforce demand
WorkSec specialises in personnel security, workforce governance and security clearance sponsorship. It works with private companies and technology providers that need to deliver into classified defence, intelligence and critical industry environments.
Donaldson said the move marked a deliberate shift into the national security sector. “WorkSec operates at the intersection of national security, sovereign capability, and human capital,” he said.
He also set out his priorities for the new role. “With expanding investment and policy focus across the defence sector and critical industries, the requirement for robust workforce governance is only increasing,” Donaldson said.
WorkSec’s leadership described the hire as part of a broader structural shift in Australia’s defence ecosystem. The company said demand for trusted workers now spans tier-one defence primes as well as smaller contractors in the supply chain.
Managing director and chief security officer Stuart Rainsford linked the appointment to WorkSec’s national expansion and to client demand under DISP. Director of Trusted Workforce Matt Kirk said conversations over the past 12 months repeatedly pointed to workforce capability gaps across the defence supply chain.
As a result, WorkSec described Donaldson’s arrival as a key step in building the systems and team needed to support clients entering or working within secure government and industry programs across Australia.
