Our Story
JLB-Yaran is an Indigenous and Veteran-owned professional service provider with a long and deep history of supporting Defence and Defence industry. JLB-Yaran are part of the broader Defence family and take great pride in supporting and building the capability of today’s war fighter. The JLB-Yaran team has Defence experience both in and out of uniform, further enhancing their ability to support the war fighter. A veteran rich workforce is attributed to our career pathways program which targets transitioning service personnel through support, training and mentoring.
JLB-Yaran is also committed to the development and employment of Indigenous professionals through the implementation of the JLB-Yaran Indigenous Development and Employment Program (IDEP), which strives to increase Indigenous development, expertise and representation at all levels of JLB-Yaran. JLB-Yaran’s connection to Indigenous talent, Defence and Defence Industry makes it the ideal partner to create meaningful employment opportunities for First Nations People—from Country to serve Country.
JLB-Yaran is an Australian-owned professional service provider. All investment in our company stays in Australia.
History of JLB-Yaran

JLB-Yaran was founded by our Chairman Rick Callaghan in 2016, a joint venture between his company Yaran Business Services and JLB Management Consultancy. JLB is Australia’s largest and most experienced management system consultancy while Yaran Business Services is one of Australia’s longest operating independent Aboriginal business advisory firms. JLB-Yaran was established by Rick to deliver an Indigenous professional services capability to Defence and develop opportunities for Indigenous talent to develop careers in the Defence Sector.
In 2019, Brendan Dumbrell joined JLB-Yaran as the Managing Director and led the creation and implementation of JLB-Yaran’s Indigenous Development and Employment Program (IDEP) into Government and Defence. With a growing workforce of Defence professionals, predominately ADF Veterans, JLB-Yaran is also committed and passionate to grow Indigenous participation in the Defence Workforce.
Our Mission
From Country to Serve Country
Our Values
Professional – We are highly competent and always strive to exceed expectations.
Trustworthy – We are trusted to deliver value and act with integrity.
Community – We are genuinely inclusive and care for our people.
Our Team
“JLB-Yaran prides itself on a highly competent workforce, including ex-service personnel, supporting CASG and Defence Primes which complements Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP) requirements”.
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Rick Callaghan
Chairman
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Brendan Dumbrell
Managing Director
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Sean Bates
Director – Governance & Strategy
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Joel Ettridge
Director - Professional Services & Adelaide Area Manager
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Hayden Surrao
Director - Veterans Support
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Daniel Cooper
Operations Manager & Sydney Area Manager
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Josh Sims
Project Manager & Melbourne Area Manager
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Abbey Boonstra
Administration Support Officer
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Shane Wallace
Defence Training Systems SME
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Ron Kovalcik
Senior ILS Consultant & Canberra Area Manager
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Aunty Mary Doctor
JLB-Yaran Indigenous Elder
Facts about JLB-Yaran’s Workforce
- 74% of JLB-Yaran employees are Ex-Veterans
- The JLB-Yaran workforce has over 150 years of service experience spanning across all three services (Navy, Army and Air Force)
- JLB-Yaran employees are a combination of both Ex Commissioned and Non-Commissioned Officers
- 26% of JLB-Yaran employees come from an Indigenous background. This includes our Chairman Rick and Managing Director Brendan.
- JLB-Yaran employees are dispersed across many locations including Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra and Brisbane.
Did you know?
- There were an estimated 600 Aboriginal Nations around Australia with more than 250 language groups.
- Today there are only about 120-145 language groups in use.
- Out of the 120-145 language groups, only 13 of these are not considered to be endangered.
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