Defence Industry Security Program (DISP) Grants

DISP

The Australian Department of Defence has implemented the Defence Industry Security Program (DISP) to minimise third party risk and enforce strict cybersecurity standards on contractors they work with. The program outlines a number of requirements across 4 key outcomes:

• Governance
• Personal Security
• Physical Security
• Information security

Red Piranha is DISP certified, so we intimately understand the journey and the DISP ecosystem. We offer a comprehensive range of DISP solutions to get you secure and certified. Our sovereign capability provides supply chain assurance across these 4 key outcome areas. As your trusted DISP partner, we can help with:

• DISP assessments
• DISP ASR (Annual Security Report)
• DISP accreditation
• Cybersecurity solutions
• ODIS grants advisory
• Cybersecurity consulting services

ODIS

The Office of Defence Industry Support (ODIS) offers free advisory and facilitation services for eligible defence sector SMEs and can help you to:

• Understand the Defence industry
• Learn how to engage with Defence
• Position yourself to succeed in the defence supply chain

This program can help you improve your business processes to become more competitive in the defence industry. If approved for the advisory and facilitation services, you will be offered one of the following:

• A facilitator for up to 2 days a week for 4 weeks who will help you understand how to navigate the defence market, the entry points, procurement processes and how to connect with relevant Defence capability areas
• A business adviser for up to 10 days over a period of 12 months who will:
  • Provide an advisory services report within the first 4 months, including a holistic assessment of your business and recommendations to better position you in the defence industry or your supply chain
  • Help you to implement these recommendations in the following 7 months.

As part of an advisory or facilitation service, your business adviser may recommend specific business improvements or skills development opportunities that may be eligible for support under one or more grant programs.

More information can be found in the ODIS Fact Sheet.

Grants

Various grants are available which can provide services to help organisations understand the DISP requirements and provide funding to help meet those requirements. The two main grants available are:

• Governance
• CIG (Capability Improvement Grant)
• SADI (Skilling Australian Defence Industry)

Red Piranha is uniquely positioned to provide end-to-end DISP services from initial grant applications, consulting services as well as the solutions across all 4 outcomes of the program.

CIG

The Capability Improvement Grant provides between $5,000 and $150,000 to support up to 50% of the cost of engaging a consultant to implement business improvements such as strategic planning, developing internal systems & policies and other relevant activities.

Grant improvements may be awarded in the following areas:

• Strategic business issues
• Human resources issues
• Internal systems
• Production and operational systems
• Marketing, branding and communication
• Financial management systems
• Exploring new markets and market intelligence
• Environmental sustainability
• Product and service development
• Mentoring/coaching
• Skills and training

You may be eligible for a Capability Improvement Grant if you:

• Have an Australian Business Number (ABN)
• Have products or services or are developing products or services that have a specific defence application
• Require defence specific support which could not be provided through other government assistance

And:

• Have received a ODIS Advisory Service Report in the previous 6 months (or up to 12 months if you apply within 6 months)
• Have sufficient funds available to fund your share of the cost of engaging an expert or consultant to implement the improvements
• Are implementing improvements within the key areas outlined above

The CIG process involves various stages and can take a number of weeks to complete, as shown below. These timeframes are estimates only and may vary based on capacity and other factors. It is estimated to take 12 weeks from submitting the ODIS application to having a completed Advisory Service Review (ASR) and then a further 8 weeks to commence the DISP application. It is expected that the ASR will make recommendations for cybersecurity improvements that will need to be implemented.

Once the ASR is received, Red Piranha can assist with preparing a quote for the technology and services required to meet the recommendations and lodging the Capability Improvement Grant application which will provide funding for the required DISP components.