My Job
Based in Brussels, I co-founded and lead a newly established boutique public affairs consultancy that provides strategic level support to organisations that want to position themselves effectively in Brussels and shape the EU tech policy agenda.
My Experience
Before establishing AK Public Affairs in 2022, I led APCO Worldwide’s European Tech Practice since 2017. My consultancy life started when I led the digital and telecoms team at Cabinet DN (now Teneo) for two years between 2013 and 2015.
My understanding of the EU Institutions and the inner workings of the EU decision-making process, stems from two stints with the Cyprus Permanent Representation, 2011-2013 and 2015-2017. I was the Attaché responsible for, among other things, telecoms, information society, cybersecurity, standardisation, internal market (including e-commerce), competition, industrial policy, and consumer protection. I helped in preparations for the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of 2012 and during the Presidency, I chaired the Telecoms, Space, and Postal Services working parties, as well as represented the Council in trilogue negotiations with the European Parliament.
I’ve also worked as a research scientist, a consultant in financial services and a technical advisor in patent law. During my Master and PhD studies at Columbia University, I was a teaching assistant (for a range of courses in the telecommunications, networking, probability and system performance evaluation fields) and a research assistant in the area of modelling and performance evaluation of communication systems and computer networks (funded by the US National Science Foundation). This educational and research background in engineering has been key in my various Brussels positions as it allows me to understand the wider technical issues and potential solutions around technology policy.
My Specialisms
My Proudest Achievements
I’d pick the successful completion of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU. Despite the significant workload (I had five legislative files just in the area of telecoms and information society) and the political pressure (this was the first time that Cyprus had led the Council), I managed with the help of my team to achieve significant results: finalising a Council Decision, helping the Council finalise its position in two legislative files and start the trilogue processes, and achieving substantial progress in the remaining files. We also helped setup and organise the first meeting of the Council “Friends of Presidency on Cyber Issues” Working Party.
It isn’t that this was simply a lot of complex work, work that mattered to my country. More than this, it was an experience that enabled me to truly understand how the EU legislative process really works and to develop particular sensitivities in relation to what kind of messaging is appropriate. It has helped me become a better consultant and a better advisor to companies and other stakeholders that want to engage with to policy makers in a constructive way.
My Education
Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Master of Philosophy, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University in the City of New York.
My Languages
English and Greek.
My Interests outside work
Greek and Cypriot folklore dancing, good wine (not only French!) and good food (not only Greek – although you would find me at Philema restaurant in Ixelles quite often).
My Favourite Brussels anecdote
Before first arriving in Brussels (with Ryan Air at Charleroi airport on a Saturday night) in July 2011, I was warned by a couple of friends that taxis can be expensive. Having lived in New York for 11 years and having taken the taxi from and to the JFK airport numerous times, I thought it couldn’t be more expensive than that. How wrong I was! I ended up paying 220 Euros for my taxi trip to Brussels… As you can imagine, ever since Uber has arrived in town, I have never set foot in a taxi again.