Probably an obvious statement to most, but for those who haven’t yet, make sure to go and participate through the associated military innovation hub for your target customer…
This is not a shameless plug, but rather just an obvious statement that hopefully is redundant to most defense businesses. All services have at least one, and often multiple directly sponsored and contractually integrated innovation hubs that service them. There are big-name brands that many people know such as: AFWERX, AAL, SOFWERX, NAVELX, etc. There are many more focused or smaller hubs like ERDXWERX, FLEETWERX, ARCWERX, etc. There is a very expansive list of all of these and the direct links to each on my website (https://lnkd.in/gWdUUGCi). What all the innovation hubs share in common, is that they all serve a military organization of some size directly. This means they have direct access and knowledge of customer needs and priorities to varying levels…but all to a greater degree than any external business (short of major defense contractors).
If you are trying to find a good place to start interacting with military end users, want exposure to military needs and interests, the innovation hubs are a fantastic place to start. With so many available there are ample opportunities to find one or more that fit your product or service niche. Many hubs have multiple free avenues of exposure to military needs or customers. They all generally host various kinds of virtual and in-person events. They are geographically dispersed, so there’s likely one of some kind not too far away from where your business is located if you wanted to visit (most aren’t on a military base).
Having worked firsthand in and with multiple innovation hubs as a military liaison for many years before I retired, I can say they are each a vibrant opportunity that any defense company should at least consider participating with in some way. If you haven’t yet looked into them, start now!
