Bluedrop Performance Learning Appoints New COO To Defence And Aerospace Business Unit
Bluedrop Performance Learning Inc. has appointed Michael O’Rourke (Mike) to the position of Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the Defence and Aerospace (D&A) business unit. Mike brings considerable defence industry and operational experience to Bluedrop. He will head the Defence and Aerospace group with full P&L responsibility as the company enters a period of substantial growth.
Michael holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from the Royal Military College and was a Combat Systems Engineering Officer with the Canadian Department of Defence. Throughout his management career, he has been the General Manager of Operations with Software Kinetics Limited, and a regional manager with Xwave with P&L responsibility for a $45 million business unit. He recently served as the Director of Operations for CAE Professional Services Group where he oversaw a business unit with revenues in excess of $50 million.
In addition to his operational and execution responsibilities as COO, Mike will join the executive team to help guide business practices and growth strategies across the whole organization. Allen Dillon (Al) will now assume the role of Vice President, Business Development and Sales and head the Company’s worldwide sales activities and team.
Emad Rizkalla, President and CEO of Bluedrop stated, “I am very pleased to welcome Mike to our team and look forward to working closely with him. Having a leader in the Defence and Aerospace business unit with his credentials, experience and skill set gives me great confidence we will manage our growth over the coming years. Under Al’s leadership we have doubled our staff, created an outstanding team, and increased our revenues by over 100% in the past year. With Mike responsible for the overall management of the team and Al leading business development, we have further strengthened the management capabilities of our company.”
Bluedrop has been recognized as one of Canada’s Top 50 Defence companies by the Canadian Defence Review. With highly specialized knowledge of military training standards and needs, the company is a leader in producing mission critical training solutions and providing custom online courseware, virtual training devices and virtual reality simulation for international military and commercial aviation clients.
