Vision & Mission
The Council on Competitiveness of Greece is the leading authority on competitiveness issues and at the forefront of any initiative towards rendering our economy more competitive so that society may prosper.
We are committed to systematic actions which aim at finding solutions and submitting proposals to specific problems in strategic areas so that both businesses and the country can exploit their potential.
Founding Members
Executive Committee
Simos Anastasopoulos
SIMOS ANASTASOPOULOS
President, of Association of S.A. & Limited Liability Companies
President, The Council on Competitiveness of Greece
Chairman & CEO, PETSIAVAS S.A.
President Emeritus, American Hellenic Chamber of Commerce
Simos Anastasopoulos is a graduate of the Department of Electrical Engineering of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), and holds a Master’s of Science Degree in Mechanical/Automotive Engineering from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
He has worked for two years for General Motors Corporation as a development Engineer at the Milford Proving Ground. Since 2002 he had been the Managing Director of the company and in 2013 was named Chairman and CEO of PETSIAVAS S.A.
Since July 2020, he is President of Associations of S.A. & Limited Liability Companies. He is the elected President of the Council on Competitiveness of Greece, since its foundation in 2018. He is also a member of the Board of the Pan-Hellenic Association of Pharmaceutical Industries and a member of the General Council of SEV Hellenic Federation of Enterprises. Since June 2019, he is President Emeritus of the American Hellenic Chamber of Commerce after a tenure of 6 years as the elected President.
Simos Anastasopoulos was born in Athens in 1957, is married to Peggy Petsiavas and has two daughters.
George Handjinicolaou
Mr. George Handjinicolaou is Chairman, non-executive member, of the Board of Directors of Piraeus Bank, and serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Athens Stock Exchange (ATHEX). He is also Chairman of the Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation, a non-profit foundation. Mr. Handjinicolaou has also been elected Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Bank Association, the non-profit legal entity that represents Greek and foreign credit institutions operating in Greece.
Mr. Handjinicolaou received his PhD in Finance from the graduate school of business at New York University, where he also earned his MBA, and holds a BS degree from the Law School at the University of Athens, Greece.
His career in the financial services sector spans over 35 years, the vast majority of which was spent at global financial institutions based in London and New York.
Mr. Handjinicolaou held the position of Deputy CEO of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) in London for 6 years (2011-16), where he was also a member of the Board of Directors. Previously and for over 25 years, he held senior management positions in the derivatives and fixed income markets at several global financial institutions including Dresdner Kleinwort Benson, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and UBS in London and New York, while he started his career at the World Bank in Washington, DC. Mr. Handjinicolaou has also leadership experience in Greece from his roles as CEO of TBANK and as Vice Chairman of the Greek Capital Market Commission.
Athanasios Savvakis
Vice President & CEO of Savvy Can – Hellenic Metal Packaging SA. Executive Director of BioSolids SA (soil improvement products). Shareholder of National Can Hellas SA. Member of the General Council of the Bank of Greece. Member of the Managing Committee of the Athens Stock Exchange. C Deputy Chairman of the Foundation for Economic & Industrial Research (IOBE). Secretary of the Greek Competitiveness Council. Member of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Production – Industry Roundtable for Growth. Member of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Association of Business Parks (HELABP). Vice-President of the Board of Directors of the Business and Cultural Development Centre (KEPA). Member of the Board of Directors of the Thessaloniki Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TCCI). Member of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Fertilizer’ Association (SPEL). Member of the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement Greece (JA/Greece). Member of the Board of Directors of the Museum of the Macedonian Struggle Foundation
Academic qualifications
ΜΒΑ from the University of Stirling (UK). BSc in Business Studies & Economics from the University of Surrey (RIHE). Certified Lead Assessor for BSEN ISO systems from the Scottish Quality Management Center of the University of Stirling. INSEAD Executive Education Program (Negotiation Dynamics & Strategic Management). International Federation of Purchasing & Supply Management – Certificate in Purchasing and Supply Chain Management.
Mr. Savvakis speaks English and Italian.
Dr. Venetia Kousia
During her longstanding career, Dr Venetia Koussia has acquired senior executive positions in companies of various industry sectors, leading them through highly volatile market conditions and emerging socio-economic challenges by designing and implementing socially responsible growth strategies.
As the President and Managing Director of ManpowerGroup Greece for more than 14 years (2002-2016), the world’s leader in innovative workforce solutions, she has solidified the company’s reputation in Greece turning it into a valuable partner for both public and private companies and organizations. Moreover, through innovative collaborations with the E.U., she has contributed in developing new successful tools for employment and entrepreneurship.
Having an active role on a national, European and an international level and through her dynamic engagement in esteemed institutions, such as the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce, she is a leading force in initiatives that aim to improve competitiveness of the Greek economy.
- The improvement of the efficiency of the Greek labor market;
- The strengthening of an entrepreneurial ecosystem for sustainable growth;
- The enhancement of Boards’ effectiveness (in listed & non-listed companies).
Believing in the power of the good example she devotes some dozens of hours annually from her personal time in assisting people to unleash their potential and overcome gender, age or other barriers.
Advocate of Learnability, on February 2017, she graduated from Pearson with the Financial Times Professional Diploma for Non-Executive Directors.
She holds a Ph.D. in Corporate Strategic Planning in the Banking Sector and an
M.Phil. in Agricultural Marketing and Market Research, both from the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom. Her first degree (B.Sc.) is in Business Administration from the American College of Greece.
She is a mother of two children.
Board Members
Yanis G. Stavrou
Born in Thessaloniki on April 1959. He studied Economic and Social Management at the University of Lyon II, France and continued his postgraduate studies in European Integration Issues at the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium and the London School of Economics and Political Science.
1983-1985: He worked as Assistant Professor at the College of Europe teaching European Policy and Management courses.
2003: He was elected at the Board of Directors of the Federation of Industries of Greece as Executive Vice President (First Vice President), and he is reelected since in the same position.
He served as Director of the European Information Centre for Enterprises (1987-1999), Executive Director of the Federation of Industries of Northern Greece (2001-2003), General Manager of the Northern Greek Agency for the Development of Private Infrastructure (1997-2003), and, Vice President of the IMESE Business School (2001-2003).
He is Member of the Board of Directors of the following companies: Thessaloniki International Fair SA, Logismos SA Information Systems, Ch. & D. Orphanides SA and Whale Graphics SA.
Past experience, as Member of the Board of Directors: National System for Quality Infrastructure (ESYP), Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE), Vocational Training Center KEK-SEVE-SBBE-TIF, Hellenic Management Association – Macedonia Regional Dept (HMA), Greek Institute of Metrology (EIM), KRI-KRI SA, Industrial Property Organization, Hellenic Vehicle Industry SA.
He is married to Eleni Orfanidou and has one daughter.
Elias Spirtounias
After graduation from the School of Mathematics of the University of Athens, Elias Spirtounias completed his graduate studies at the School of Electrical Engineering (M.Sc. degree and Ph.D. studies) at Boston University. During his residence in the United States, he participated as a Research Engineer in several programs in co-operation with other organizations and companies such as NASA, MIT, UNH, working mainly in the fields of analog and digital electronics circuits design and applications. He returned to Greece in 1992 and after completing his military service in 1994, he held the position of Technical Director for the subsidiary of the Italian company Citec SpA., a company specialized in the design, production and application of voice and image processing systems. From 1997 until February 2009, he worked for the Foundation of the Hellenic World, a major Greek non-profit cultural organization starting as a Construction Supervisor and continuing as a Director of the Cultural Center “Hellenic Cosmos”. During his tenure, he contributed significantly to the expansion, development and operation of the Center and its establishment as one of the most known cultural sites in Greece and abroad. From March 2009, Elias Spirtounias holds the position of Executive Director of the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce.
Yiannos Kontopoulos
Mr. Kontopoulos has a long and successful international experience in global capital markets. He was a Partner, Chief Macro Strategist at CQS Fund in London, with previous service at UBS and Merrill Lynch, and he was CEO at Eurobank Asset Management. He has worked in senior management positions in capital markets in New York, London, and Athens. He started his career on Wall Street at Salomon Brothers. He was Managing Director at two of the largest international investment banks, UBS, and Merrill Lynch, where he created and led large teams of leading analysts, building an extensive international network of contacts with major and significant investment firms around the world. In Greece, he was Chief Investment Officer of Eurobank as well as CEO of Eurobank Asset Management, the largest mutual fund management company in the country. He has also worked in key positions in hedge funds abroad with billions in investments in global markets. Mr. Kontopoulos holds a Ph.D., M.Phil., and M.A. in Economics from Columbia University and an A.B., also in Economics, from Harvard University. He was born and raised in Thessaloniki.
Nikolaos A. Bakatselos
Mr. Nikolaos Bakatselos is the President & CEO of “Pyramis Metallourgia A.E.”. Mr. Nikolaos Bakatselos was Member of the Board of Directors, and Deputy Managing Director, of “Northern Greece Publishing S.A.”, he has held the position of Managing Director of “Imperium AEEX”, and Member of the Board of Directors of “Egnatia Bank Securities S.A.” and he was a Member of the Board of Directors of Attica Bank from February 2014 until June 2016. Mr. Bakatselos was a Member of the Steering Committee of the “International Hellenic University” until January 2014 and Member of the Board and President of the Northern Greece Committee of EEDE. He is a Member of the Committee Support of CERTH and Member of the Steering Committee of SVE. He is Member of the Board of Directors of the American – Hellenic Chamber of Commerce for several years and in June 2010 he was elected Vice President of AMCHAM and President of the Northern Greece Committee. Mr. Nikolaos Bakatselos holds a B.A. in Sociology from University of Reading and a MSc in Shipping, Trade and Finance from City University Business School.
Symeon G. Tsomokos
Symeon G. Tsomokos studied Law and Economics at the University of Athens. He established SGT in Athens in 1997 and TGI in Belgrade in 2001, which he presides successfully all these years. He is also the Founder and President of Delphi Economic Forum, an independent and impartial non-profit organization committed to deliver and promote innovative ideas for sustainable and competitive growth for Southeast Europe.
He is the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Serbia in the region of Thessaly in Greece, while in 2006 he established the Greece-Serbia Chamber of Commerce which he presides.
He is also the Founder of the Business Council for Greece-United States, the Greek-Hungarian Business Council, the Greek-Egyptian Business Council.
In the past he has served as Commercial Specialist at the US Embassy in Athens (1973-1980) and CEO at the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce (1980-1997).
He has also served as Secretary General & Treasurer of the Council of the American Chambers of Commerce based in Europe (1990-1993) and as Secretary General of the Business Council Greece-Turkey (1993-1998).
Dimitris Kadis
Mr. Kadis holds an MBA from the Warwick Business School.
In 2003, he started working at Pharmathen holding several Senior positions in Financial Analysis, Corporate and Business Development and Strategic Planning.
During his tenure in Business Development Pharmathen’s global presence extended to 65 counrties.
He currently holds the position of Group CEO.
Dimitris Koutsopoulos
Dimitris is an Economist holding a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics Cardiff Business School, University of Wales as well as a Master in International Business & Management and a Master in International Finance from the University of Westminster, London, UK.
Dimitris is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA) in the UK, Registered statutory Auditor in Greece with the Hellenic Accounting and Auditing Oversight Board (HAASOB).
He is a member of the Executive Committee of Deloitte Central Mediterranean as well as a member of the Supervisory Committee of the Greek Registered auditors.
Dimitris’ professional career started at Deloitte in September 1998 when he joined the Firm as an Auditor.
In March 2004 he joined Financial Advisory Services and having contributed significantly to the foundation and development of the Transaction Support and Restructuring advisory service lines he became a Financial Advisory Services partner in 2006.
In June 2011, Dimitris was appointed as the Leader of the Deloitte Greece’s Consulting practice. He has worked with several complex clients, for the major Greek Banking Institutions and the major listed companies on the Athens Stock Exchange.
Dimitris was appointed CEO of Deloitte Greece in 2015.
George Margonis
George Margonis is the CEO of Papastratos, leading Greece, Cyprus, and Malta.
After studying Marketing and Business Administration, he began his career in Greece by holding commercial positions in the areas of marketing, communication, and sales.
In 2001, he joined Papastratos, where he assumed increasingly responsible positions in the Commercial Operations department, and, in 2009, he joined the Philip Morris International headquarters in Switzerland to direct the European Sales Strategy. He then returned to Greece and held the position of the Director of Marketing and Sales for Papastratos until May 2014, when he was appointed Director of Sales for Greece, Cyprus, and Malta.
From 2017 until recently, he was the CEO of PMI in Bulgaria, leading the affiliate to significant growth while participating actively in local and international business community institutional bodies.
In March 2023, he was appointed CEO of Papastratos to lead the company into its new era, in the wake of a €200 million investment in Greece, the creation of 300 new jobs, and a total export value of €300 million euro.
Michael Stassinopoulos
Michael Stassinopoulos was born in Athens in 1967. He graduated from Athens College (1985) and holds a Bachelor Degree (BSc) in Management Sciences from London School of Economics (1989). He also holds a postgraduate diploma (MSc) in Shipping, Trade and Finance from City University Business School UK.
Michael Stassinopoulos is a member of the Board of Directors of VIOHALCO SA. since 2013. He was a member of the Board of Directors of ELVAL SA Aluminium Industry for 11 years. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the “Hellenic Production – Industry Roundtable for Growth”, a newly established nongovernmental organization. He participates to the BoD of Michail N.Stassinopoulos-Viohalco Foundation.
Alexandros Angelopoulos
Alexandros Ν. Angelopoulos, is the Managing Director of Aldemar Resorts, a leading resorts chain company in Greece. He has been active in the family business since 1995, working hard towards ideas and policies that open up new horizons in the Greek hotel business and place Tourism at the core of Greek economic activity.
Alexandros Angelopoulos, has been following with great interest the developments in the Business Ecosystem in Greece and the developments in Europe while he is very active as he participates in various organisations and committees representing the tourism sector and the entrepreneurship in Greece. In 2018, he became a Member of the Advisory Committee of the newly formed Sustainable Development Center of Governance and Public Law and a Founding Member of the Hellenic Council of Competitiveness. Up until 2017, he was holding the position of Member of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Environmental Policy Committee of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels while in 2018 he was elected as the Ambassador of all 5 star hotels located in Crete and Secretary General to the newly formed Chamber of Hotels in Heraklion. He is currently also holding the position of the Secretary of the Board of Directors of Hellenic Entrepreneurs Association, Vice President of the Greek Eurasian Business Council. He is Member of the Business Advisory Board of the BCA College and Honorary Consulate of Ukraine for Peloponnese.
His innate love of living a life of welfare and quality arises from his two great passions. Sustainability in all aspects, environmental, social and financial, and he expresses it through his actions within his business. His other passion is supporting young generation. He has been actively supporting new emerging executives and young leaders to gain a clear vision for their future. He collaborates with the national and international Academia through mentoring and participates in major conferences as keynote speaker.
Alexandros Angelopoulos, was born in Athens in 1972. He studied Business Management (Boston University 1995) and successfully completed his post-graduate studies in International management at Boston College (1998). He is Graduate of the PDP program of New York Cornell University, (2008).
Advisory Board
Vassilis E. Kafatos
Vassilis Kafatos is a Partner of Deloitte in charge of Strategy. He is the Growth Leader for Greece and Chairman of the Deloitte Alexander Competency Center. He has extensive consulting experience in various sectors of the economy. He has supervised major projects in the fields of corporate & digital strategy, business model transformation, financial restructuring, mergers & acquisitions and operational excellence. He serves as a Trustee of the Board of Anatolia College, as a member of the Board of Directors of the American – Hellenic Chamber of Commerce and as an Executive Committee member of the Board of Directors of the Federation of Industries of Northern Greece. He holds a degree in Economic Science from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, an MBA in Corporate Strategy from the University of Texas at Austin and postgraduate diplomas in Business Leadership from the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), Lausanne.
Christos Cabolis
Christos Cabolis is the Chief Economist at the IMD World Competitiveness Center where he manages the publication of the competitiveness rankings and most recently the Smart City Index. He studied Economics at the University of Athens, Greece, holds an MA from the California State University, Long Beach, and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He has taught at Yale, where he was also the Executive Director of the International Center for Finance at the Yale School of Management, at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, and was an Associate Professor of Economics and Finance at ALBA Graduate Business School-ACG.
Tassos Iossiphides
Ο Τάσος Ιωσηφίδης είναι εταίρος (Partner) στον παγκόσμιο οργανισμό της ΕΥ (Ernst & Young) από το 2005 και Επικεφαλής του Τμήματος Χρηματοοικονομικών Συμβούλων, Εταιρικής Στρατηγικής και Συναλλαγών, ΕΥ Ελλάδος & ΝΑ Ευρώπης. O κος Ιωσηφίδης διαθέτει πάνω από 27 έτη εμπειρία στην παροχή υπηρεσιών χρηματοοικονομικού συμβούλου σε διάφορους κλάδους και έχει ηγηθεί πολύ σημαντικών συμβουλευτικών έργων και εταιρικών συναλλαγών στην Ελλάδα και σε χώρες της Ν.Α. Ευρώπης συμπεριλαμβανομένων Αποτιμήσεων, εξαγορών & συγχωνεύσεων, ιδιωτικοποιήσεων, ΣΔΙΤ, χρηματοδοτήσεις επενδύσεων καθώς και εργασίες Επενδυτικής Συμβουλευτικής που σχετίζονται με την άντληση Χρηματοδότησης (Corporate & Project Finance) συμπεριλαμβανομένων των επιδοτήσεων μέσω Ταμείου Ανάκαμψης αλλά και εργαλείων απευθείας χρηματοδότησης από την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση.
Ο κος Ιωσηφίδης έχει επίσης διατελέσει σύμβουλος οργανισμών και συνδέσμων που στηρίζουν την επιχειρηματικότητα, όπως το ΣΕΒ και το ΕΒΕΑ σε θέματα που αφορούν στις ΜμΕ, όπως Μεγέθυνση (scale up), χρηματοδότηση & εξαγωγές, καθώς και της Endeavor και ΘΕΑ, υποστηρίζοντας συμβουλευτικά νεοφυείς και δυναμικά αναπτυσσόμενες επιχειρήσεις.
Είναι εκλεγμένο μέλος του ΔΣ του ΕΒΕΑ από το 2017, κάτοχος διπλώματος Πολιτικού Μηχανικού από Πανεπιστήμιο Πατρών, και MBA από το University of Stirling, του Ηνωμένου Βασιλείου. Επίσης έχει λάβει εξειδικευμένη επαγγελματική εκπαίδευση σε θέματα Εταιρικής στρατηγικής στο Harvard Business School, Εταιρικής Χρηματοοικονομικής από Insead, Paris και εξαγορών & συγχωνεύσεων στο Andersen Training Center, Chicago.
Chryssos Kavounides
Chryssos Kavounides is a BCG Managing Director & Partner and Head of the BCG Athens office. He joined BCG in 2011 and focuses on work in Financial Institutions with particular expertise in Transformation. He has international, extensive experience in strategy development, operational transformation, cost optimization, as well as customer journey design and implementation. Prior to BCG, Chryssos’ consultancy experience was focused on Project Management best practice for Blue Chip companies such as Airbus, Vodafone, Visa Europe. Chryssos is a Mechanical Engineer and holds an MEng and a PhD from Imperial College, London.
Ilias Lekkos
Dr. Ilias Lekkos (Assistant General Manager) is the Group Chief Economist and Head of Investment Strategy with Piraeus Bank, one of the largest banks in Greece. He is also Chairman of the Advisory Committee to the Hellenic Statistical System, a member of the Board of Directors of European Reliance Asset Management and of the Foundation of Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE). He is also a member of the Council of Economic Advisors of the Hellenic Bank Association. As Chief Economist with Piraeus Bank, he leads the division which reports on developments in the Greek economy and the Greek banking system. He also monitors macroeconomic developments at the G7 economies and is responsible for devising the investment strategy and asset allocation policy of Piraeus Bank Group. Before joining Piraeus Bank he was a Senior Economist at Eurobank-EFG and prior to that he has worked at the Bank of England, HBOS-Treasury Services and Standard and Poor’s. Dr. Lekkos holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Athens University of Economics and Business, an MSc in Economics and Finance from Warwick University and a PhD in Finance from Lancaster University. His research has been published in a number of academic journals.
Panagiotis Liargovas
Panagiotis Liargovas received his BA degree from the University of Athens and his MA and Ph.D degrees in Economics from Clark University, Worcester MA. He has been a Fulbright Scholar, a Bakalas Foundation Scholar, a Teaching Assistant Scholar (Clark University) and a European Commission trainee (Brussels). He has taught in many Universities including Clark University, Bologna University, and the Universities of: Athens, Patras and Crete. He has been teaching at the Hellenic Open University for more than 19 years. He has served as economic advisor to the Greek Ministry of Finance, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Municipality of Athens in many occasions. For the period 2013-18 he was the Head of the Parliamentary Budget Office at the Hellenic Parliament. He is currently Chairman of the Board and Scientific Director of the Centre of Planning and Economic Research (KEPE) and of the National Productivity Board. He is also Professor at the Department of Economics, University of Peloponnese. Professor Liargovas specializes on International and European Economics, Monetary Economics, Regional Economics and Economic Development and Policy. His research agenda is highly interdisciplinary, combining economics, international trade and finance, strategy, social issues and management and focuses mainly on two regions: European Union and Southeast Europe (including Greece). His specialization on these issues and regions is manifested in several peer-reviewed publications (books, articles, research reports and conference papers) but also in extensive and continuous teaching. He has made more than 100 publications in academic journals and has published more than 20 books. His latest book (Tziolas publishers, in Greek) was published in 2018 and was entitled “The European Phenomenon: History, Institutions and Policies”.
Dimitris Malliaropulos
Dimitris Malliaropulos is chief economist and director of economic analysis and research at the Bank of Greece, and professor of finance at the Department of Banking and Financial Management, University of Piraeus. He is also a member of the Economic Policy Committee (EPC) and the Economic Development Review Committee for Greece (EDRC) of the OECD. He holds a PhD in economics from the Freie Universitaet Berlin and has taught economics and finance at Brunel University, London Metropolitan University and Freie Universitaet Berlin.
He has worked in the past as an economist at the Deutsche Bundesbank, National Bank of Greece and Eurobank and as a quantitative consultant in global asset allocation at Invesco Asset Management, London. He has also served for more than ten years as a member and Chair of the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Banking Federation.
His academic research focuses on asset pricing, banking, empirical finance and macroeconomics and has been published in refereed top academic journals such as Journal of Business, Journal of Banking and Finance, Journal of International Money and Finance, Journal of Empirical Finance etc. as well as in numerous applied industry journals.
George Pagoulatos
George Pagoulatos is Professor of European Politics and Economy at the Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB), and Visiting Professor at the College of Europe in Bruges. He is the Director General of the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) and has been Vice President and member of the Board of Directors of ELIAMEP since 2013. He is advisor of European Affairs to the President of the Hellenic Republic and sits at the Governing Board of the Brussels-based European Policy Centre (EPC) since 2015. He served as a member of the High Council of the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence (2010-13), a President of the Hellenic University Association for European Studies (EPEES) and a board member of various academic and civic organizations. He holds a Law degree from the University of Athens, M.Sc. and D.Phil. in Politics from the University of Oxford, where he was a Rhodes scholar. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Princeton University (1998-99) in the field of Comparative Political Economy. He has published a variety of articles in leading academic journals and has authored and co-authored six books. His book Greece’s New Political Economy: State, Finance and Growth from Postwar to EMU (Oxford St. Antony’s Series, Palgrave McMillan, 2003) received the Academy of Athens award for best book in economics. He has served as Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister and Director of Strategy to the Prime Ministers Lucas Papademos and Panagiotis Pikrammenos (2011-2012). He is a regular columnist of the Sunday edition of the daily newspaper Kathimerini (2007-present) and has been interviewed and quoted extensively in the international media.