DroneShield announces CEO and chairman transition

DroneShield (ASX:DRO) announced a leadership transition as it enters its next phase of expansion.

Oleg Vornik, who has served as Managing Director and CEO for over a decade, is stepping down from his role.

Under Vornik's stewardship, the company transformed from a fledgeling start-up with a $27 million market capitalisation at its 2016 IPO to an ASX200 member valued at nearly $4 billion.

Vornik will remain as an adviser for three months to ensure a seamless transition before taking time off to reconnect with family.

Succeeding him is Angus Bean, the company’s Chief Product Officer and one of its earliest employees.

Having joined in 2016 and served in C-suite roles since 2018, Bean is credited as the "key architect" of the technologies that define DroneShield today.

Outgoing Chairman Peter James, who is also retiring from the board, praised Bean’s internal appointment as a natural progression of the company's succession planning.

Bean now inherits a global workforce of over 500 employees and an engineering team of 350-plus.

In tandem with these changes, Hamish McLennan has been appointed as independent chairman-elect.

As the company embarks on this new chapter, Bean expressed his commitment to leading the talented Australian-based team in protecting critical infrastructure and military personnel worldwide.