Attracting and retaining talent in the Australian defence industry can be tricky.
Projects like AUKUS, Hunter Class Frigates, Land 400 Phases 2 and 3 and a range of guided weapons programs are driving growth. Yet while organisations focus heavily on attracting talent, many are losing their most valuable asset: mid-career professionals.
Engineers, ICT specialists, project management professionals and security-cleared experts with five to 15 years of experience are increasingly exiting defence industry. This hits hard because it’s at this point that they are most productive and difficult to replace.
Retaining this cohort should be a strategic workforce priority.
Why Mid-Career Professionals Leave the Australian Defence Industry
Understanding workforce trends is the first step towards improving retention. Here are five reasons why mid-career professionals go elsewhere:
Bureaucracy and slow decision-making. Government can be slow. So can large Defence primes or major contractors. For professionals accustomed to innovation and delivery momentum, this can be frustrating. When professionals feel stalled, they look elsewhere.
Limited career progression pathways. After eight to 12 years in the defence sector, many workers reach a plateau. Unlike in some commercial sectors, structured advancement pathways are not alway defined, especially among SMEs.
Adjacent industry competition. Infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, resources and finance industries are all competing for similar talent. These industries may offer higher salaries, greater flexibility, faster-paced decision-making cycles. Security cleared workers (Baseline, NV1, NV2 and TSPV) will be particularly in demand.
Rigid work arrangements. While some Defence projects require secure onsite work environments due to AGSVA security clearance requirements, not all roles require full-time physical presence. Organisations that fail to offer hybrid options when possible will lose experienced workers to more adaptable employers.
Burnout from high-pressure Defence projects. Longer term Defence projects offer stability, but they can also create stagnation. Workers may leave in search of broader project exposure and skill diversification.
How to Retain Mid-Career Talent in Defence
Retention requires deliberate workforce planning, not reactive counter-offers.
Build structured career pathways
High-performing defence industry organisations create transparent progression models. We recently wrote a blog on this: How to Progress Without Leaving the Sector. It’s vital to know what workers want so that employers can build progression pathways that are meaningful. They might include:
Leadership pathways
Technical specialist tracks
Program and enterprise-level roles
Clear competency frameworks
Career mapping conversations should be ongoing, not just at annual reviews.
Improve organisational agility
Reducing unnecessary bureaucracy improves engagement. Practical steps include:
Delegating decision authority where appropriate
Streamlining approval workflows
Investing in modern ICT systems
Encouraging innovation within compliance frameworks
Compete beyond salary
Yes, remuneration is important. But it is rarely - if ever - the sole driver. Job satisfaction factors include:
Access to interesting work
Work life balance
Company culture
Mentoring from senior leaders
Funded professional development
Incentives and benefits
Certifications in project management, systems engineering or cyber
Retention improves when professionals are satisfied. Build a value proposition around what workers really care about.
Introduce flexible work where possible
Security clearance obligations must be upheld, but flexibility within those boundaries is achievable, especially at Baseline, NV1 and NV2 security levels. Where AGSVA requirements permit, consider:
Hybrid work models
Compressed workweeks
Flexible start and finish times
Relocation, lifestyle or wellness support
Many mid-career professionals have commitments outside of work, including caring for children or parents. Flexible work options makes life and work easier to balance.
Internal mobility and project rotation
High-performing defence industry organisations actively rotate talent across programs. This allows for broader capability development, reduced burnout, increased engagement and stronger succession pipelines. Internal mobility protects institutional knowledge while refreshing individual careers.
Why is this so critical?
Replacing a security-cleared professional is time-consuming and expensive. AGSVA clearance processes, onboarding into secure programs and capability ramp-up can take months. Losing experienced cleared staff disrupts delivery, impacts compliance and increases project risk.
In the current market, where candidates are in ‘watch and wait’ mode, where hesitancy is strong, it’s important to protect the workers already within the workforce, and foster their full potential.
Photo by ThisisEngineering on Unsplash
