• Over 28 years of professional experience in the analysis of legal and institutional preparedness for EU Accession in the field of competition, SME and private sector development and over 18 years of practical experience in enhancing the effectiveness of locally-led economic growth by empowerment of local government, strengthening civil society and BSOs in line with the EU acquis and European best regional development practices;
• Over 19 years of professional experience in the field of harmonisation of national legal and regulatory frameworks with international standards including the respective EU acquis legislation, directives and regulations in the area of SME development, especially on regional and local levels.
• In-depth expertise in the comparative legal systems of the European Union, new Member States (e.g. Poland, Croatia) and EaP (e.g. Ukraine, Belarus, Azerbaijan and Georgia).
• Over 8 years of team leading experience: in Poland (1995-1997) and EU pre-accession countries (Croatia, BiH, Serbia) from 1999 to 2006.
• Over 9 years of experience in EaP countries: over 2,5 years in Georgia; 3 years in Belarus, 4 years in Ukraine;
• In a senior management position an extensive experience in performing capacity building activities in the field of SME/private sector development; proven ability to develop successful working relationships with the highest levels of institutional partners, decision-makers and market participants in order to accomplish project results including as Senior Advisor to the Office of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, providing legal and regulatory advice on strengthening private sector and design locally-based SME policies through the establishment and support of a trained Independent Competition Authority; and, as Advisor to the Council of Ministers of Poland, and a Member of the inter-ministerial Visegrád Group Commission, that was responsible for providing legislative and institutional capacity assessment in Member States dealing with regional and local development and policies boosting private sector in full conformity with strategic EU integration policies; In total, over 8 years of working with senior officials of EaP (Belarus-2 years, Georgia-2 years, Ukraine-4 years), and EU Member States: 4 years in Croatia & Poland.
• Proficiency in PCM and LFA; Strong communication and leadership skills; Strong drafting and report writing skills.