| Speaker Biographies |
| Mr Giorgio Callegari Deputy General Director for Strategy and Alliances Aeroflot Born in 1959. Graduated from Turin Polytechnic University (Turin, Italy) with a degree in mining. Since 1986 till December 1989 worked as Sales Manager, was a member of the BoD and the executive committee in “Malan Viaggi” air company. Since 1990 till 2011 worked in “Alitalia” air company, where he rose from Sales Manager, Vice President for Sales, Vice President for Business Development, Vice President for Alliances, Business Development and Foreign Relations to Executive Vice President for Alliances and Strategies. Since 2011 has been working for JSC “Aeroflot”. | |
| Mr Timothy O'Neil-Dunne Group Product Manager Air Black Box Timothy O'Neil-Dunne is co-founder of VaultPAD http://www.vaultpad.com, an accelerator devoted exclusively to travel and travel-related startup businesses. One of the first companies to emerge from the incubator is Air Black Box (http://www.airblackbox.com), a cloud-based software company providing Airline Connectivity Solutions. Timothy was a founding management team member of the Expedia team, where he headed the international and ground transportation portfolios. He also spent time with Worldspan as head of technology, where he managed international technology services from infrastructure to product. Timothy is also a permanent advisor to the World Economic Forum and writes as Professor Sabena http://professorsabena.tumblr.com. He sits on a number of advisory and executive boards | |
| Mr Tony Fernandes Group CEO AirAsia Tan Sri Dr. Tony Fernandes has a personal credo - "Believe the unbelievable. Dream the impossible. Never take no for an answer." He studied at Epsom College, UK, and the London School of Economics and qualified as an Associate Member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in 1991. He became a Fellow Member in 1996. He was admitted as a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) in 2008. Tony has been the Group CEO of AirAsia since December 2001. Prior to AirAsia, he was the Financial Controller of Virgin Communications London before joining Warner Music International London in 1989. He was promoted to Managing Director, Warner Music Malaysia in 1992 and to Regional Managing Director, Warner Music South East Asia in 1996. In 1999, he became the Vice President of Warner Music South East Asia. Tony's many awards include: Honor of the Commander of the Order of the British Empire, conferred by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2011 for services to promote commercial and educational links between the UK and Malaysia. In 2010, the French government had conferred on him the award of Officer of the Legion d'Honneur, the highest award that can be conferred on a non-French national. He was named as one of the world's 100 most creative people in business for 2011 by New York-based business magazine Fast Company, and awarded the Inaugural ‘Travel Business Leaders Award’ winner by CNBC. | |
| Peter Simpson Group CEO Airline Investments Ltd Peter Simpson, Group CEO of AIL has over 30 years experience within the aviation industry. He joined AIL Group from British Airways where he was Managing Director of BA at Gatwick Airport since 2013. Simpson was Group Managing Director of bmi following the acquisition of the business from Lufthansa, which lead to the successful integration of bmi’s mainline business into British Airways and also oversaw the sale of bmi regional from a subsidiary of bmi into an independently-owned airline in the same year. He was previously Managing Director of BA CityFlyer, having launched the airline, and driven the successful expansion at London City Airport since its inception in 2007. AIL owns both bmi regional and Loganair – both businesses operate with distinctive and individual brands. | |
| Mr Jos Nijhuis President & CEO Amsterdam Airport Schiphol Having joined Schiphol Group as a Board member in 2008, Jos A. Nijhuis (59) was appointed President & CEO from 1 January 2009 and re-appointed per 2012. He is also non-Executive Director of Aéroports de Paris and Director of the Board of Directorsof Brisbane Airport Corporation PTY Ltd. Jos Nijhuis started his career as an accountant and worked for many years (1980-2008) at PricewaterhouseCoopers in various management capacities, most recently as CEO. Jos Nijhuis is a member of the ACI Europe Board and the Executive Committee. He is a member of the Supervisory Board of SNS Bank and member of the Supervisory Board of Aon Groep Nederland B.V. Jos Nijhuis is also active in the social sector as a board member of Stichting Nationale Opera & Ballet. | |
| Berend Onnes Manager, Traffic Analysis & Forecasts Amsterdam Airport Schiphol Berend has been head of the team, in charge of business analytics and market projections and route business cases since 2014. Closely collaborating with scientific institutions to be leading in developing forecasting models and analytical tools. Previously working at Schiphol (since 2007) as analyst for the commercial department, at capacity management and as head of the Airport-CDM sector wide implementation programme. | |
| Mr Abdul Wahab Teffaha Secretary General Arab Air Carriers Association After his post-graduate studies in Socio - Economic Development & Political Sociology, Mr. Teffaha joined AACO as an assistant tariff analyst and rose up in the ranks until becoming Assistant Secretary General in 1992. He was elected Secretary General of the Association in June 1996 and still serves in this capacity. Mr. Teffaha played a key role in developing a new strategy for AACO based on delivering specific measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound results to AACO member Airlines. Joint Projects were quickly launched and include to date Fuel Project, Ground Handling, Joint Market Intelligence, the establishment of Regional Training Center and Global Distribution Agreements covering almost all the markets of the region and MRO Cooperation. | |
| Mr Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus Managing Director Aviation Strategy and Concepts Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus was born in Australia, raised in the UK and finished his school education in Paris, France. He likes to describe himself as an “Australian-born international European”. Ulrich studied law in Freiburg, Germany, and after graduation in 1980, began as political liaison officer at Lufthansa German Airlines in Cologne in 1981. Ulrich coordinated the political activities of former Secretary of State and then CEO Heinz Ruhnau in Brussels and Strasburg. After assuming diverse management functions in the airline in such areas as HR and marketing, Ulrich was appointed Vice President Government Affairs in 1992, and as such was deeply involved in the privatisation of the airline as of 1993. Ulrich secured Lufthansa’s interests in the negotiations of an Open Sky between the USA and Germany and subsequently the anti-trust approval for the airline’s alliances with United Airlines and SAS.
In Sep-2002, Ulrich was unanimously elected as Secretary General of the then 28 airline member strong Association of European Airlines, based in Brussels. He represented the interests of his members publicly and politically, and coordinated efforts of the European airline sector to contribute to a European regulatory framework for the entire aviation value chain. This led to an intense exchange between the association and the EU institutions, notably the European Commission, culminating in several regulatory proposals in areas such as aviation security, safety, infrastructure and environment. Ulrich was also involved in the negotiations of a comprehensive EU-US Aviation Agreement.
After 10 years, Ulrich left the then 36 airline member strong association in Sep-2012 and founded his own firm “Aviation Strategy & Concepts”, based in Brussels. His firm, which he likes to call a “networking agency” offers airlines, airports, EU institutions, NGOs and partner firms a platform to establish contacts and develop new solutions.
Ulrich has two children, Felix aged 19 and Julia, 17. He enjoys skiing, jogging, chess and reading. | |
| Mr Bobby Healy CTO CarTrawler Bobby Healy is an experienced inventor and technology entrepreneur specialising in booking engine software. He joined CarTrawler in 2005 having begun his career building computer games for Nintendo at 16 years of age. Prior to joining CarTrawler, Bobby founded Eland Technologies which he later sold to airline technology giant SITA and remained as CTO until 2005. His booking solutions are now in use by 80% of the world's top 20 airlines. Bobby continues to be an avid computer programmer and is a frequent speaker on the international circuit on subjects related to technology in the airline industry, ancillary revenue and online distribution. | |
| Mr Pat Byrne Executive Chairman CityJet In February 2015, Pat returned to Cityjet, the regional airline he had founded back in 1993 and which is now independent of Air France, to take up the full time role of Executive Chairman and CEO. He is very focused on leading a major transformation of the regional carrier to become a leading niche operator in Europe in the provision of wet lease capacity to operate extensive route networks for major carriers while also developing its own brand network into London City Airport, where it is the second largest operator in terms of slots operated. In the past 12 months Cityjet management has overseen the winning of an extensive wet lease contract with SAS, acquired the SAS subsidiary Blue1, ordered a fleet of new CRJ 900’s from Bombardier (for the SAS programme) and also committed to the Superjet SSJ 100 as the fleet replacement for the airline’s Avro RJ’s. Cityjet will take delivery of 8 new Bombardier CRJ 900’s between March and June of this year and the first 2 of its firm order for 15 Superjet SSJ 100’s in May. Cityjet also has options on 6 additional CRJ 900’s and 16 SSJ 100’s.
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| Julie Oettinger Managing Director, Legal & Regulatory Delta Air Lines Julie Oettinger joined Delta Air Lines in January 2015 as Managing Director, Legal and Regulatory Affairs with direct responsibility for Europe, Middle East and Africa.She also supervises Legal and Regulatory Affairs in Asia Pacific and the Americas.She is based in the Hague, Netherlands. Prior to that, Julie Oettinger served from June 2010 to November 2014 as Assistant Administrator for International, Policy and the Environment at the Federal Aviation Administration in Washington, DC. Prior to joining FAA, Ms. Oettinger was Managing Director for International and Regulatory Affairs at United Airlines. Ms. Oettinger previously served as Assistant General Counsel at US Airways from 1998 to 2002 where she was responsible for all international legal affairs and all regulatory matters. Ms. Oettinger also was Attorney Advisor in the Legal Advisor's Office at the U.S. Department of State where she was Legal Advisor to the aviation negotiation team, Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for International Security Affairs and Legal Advisor at the U.S. Embassy Panama. Ms. Oettinger received a B.A. from Tufts University and a J.D. from the University of Michigan. | |
| Anthony Drury Director, Head of Business easyJet Anthony Drury is the Director and Head of Business at easyJet Airline Limited. He is the senior executive responsible for the development, execution and management of the company’s B2B business operations. easyJet is investing significant resources - against high expectations - to become Europe’s preferred short haul business airline. Anthony is responsible for setting the strategic direction and priorities as the company expands their corporate travel business. Anthony is an experienced general business manager with a proven track record across corporate travel and B2B payments businesses in global, regional and market-based roles in Europe and Asia Pacific. He has a value-driven, customer-centric approach when forming business relationships, and has a great ability to build and expand businesses across a range of companies and industries. Previously, Anthony held senior roles at American Express in Sydney and London where he led globally diverse, multi-market B2B businesses and teams. Most recently he was the Vice President and General Manager for American Express Global Business Travel across Northern Europe, with responsibility for the P&L across five European countries. Previously he was part of the global sales leadership team, responsible for the business’ B2B sales across the Asia Pacific region. Anthony has served on several company boards including as Chairman of Mayflower American Express in Malaysia providing strategic oversight through the GFC in 2009-10; as well as AFTA (Australian Federation of Travel Agents); Business Travel Agents Association (Australia) and Bicycle New South Wales. Anthony holds a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) and a Masters of eCommerce Management, both from Macquarie University, Sydney. | |
| Karen Hutchings Global Travel, Meetings & Events Leader Ernst & Young Global Ltd Karen Manages US$1.8 billion travel spend and approximately $400M in Meetings & Events spend with a savings/cost avoidance target of $43M and achieved $69M in FY15. Key area of focus since joining EY was the restructure of the Travel, Meetings & Events team and the Travel Management Company RFP and implementation. Having realigned the team and implemented a new solution in 120 plus countries these two projects are complete. Being seen as trusted business advisors and providing exceptional client service were a key objective in FY15 and the implementation of technology as enablers for EY travelers such as mobile APPs engaging with disruptors and looking at robotics to support cost saving initiatives and demonstrating brand value are the focus for FY16. ·The EY Travel, Meetings & Events team were named Team of the Year 2015 by Buying Business Travel Magazine,Karen herself was recognized as the BTN Multinational Travel Manager of the Year and again the team won ITM Travel, Meetings & Events team of the year in 2016. Prior to joining EY Karen lead the travel team at AIG, was ASPAC and EMEIA Regional Head at Citi and Global Head of Travel at Merrill Lynch In 2008, as the Global Head of Travel at Merrill Lynch, awarded Global Travel team of the year by the ‘Buying Business Travel’ magazine In 2009, recognized as a ‘Face of Innovation’ in the Corporate Travel Industry for her ground breaking work in the ‘follow the sun’ service model which has been adapted within the travel team at EY On a personal note … While running was always a passion, having run 26 marathons around the world, Karen now spends her spare time with her horses, currently breaking in her 5 year old thoroughbred Bobby Dazzler! | |
| Mr Tewolde GebreMariam CEO Ethiopian Airlines Tewolde GebreMariam joined Ethiopian Airlines in 1985 as Transportation Agent at Addis Ababa Airport. He progressed through the ladder to Manager Cargo Traffic Handling. In 1995, he was appointed as Regional Director for India and South East Asia based in Bombay. He was later transferred to Jeddah as Area Manager for Saudi Arabia. When Ethiopian commenced direct services to the USA in 1998, he was appointed as Area Sales Manager for North East USA and Canada based in New York. In October 2000, he was appointed as Regional Director for the Americas. On August 16 2004 he was appointed as Executive Officer Marketing & Sales to head the Marketing and Sales Operations of Ethiopian. On July 1, 2006, he was appointed as Chief Operating Officer of Ethiopian to head all the operating divisions of the airline Commercial, Flight Operations, Customer Services and Maintenance and Engineering. Since January 1, 2011 he has been serving as CEO of Ethiopian Airlines. In his CEO role, Mr. Tewolde has been a multiple award winner. In November, 2012, he won “The African CEO of the Year-2012” award from the African CEO Forum organized jointly by Jeune Afrique and the African Development Bank in Geneva. In December 2012, he won “The Best African Business Leader” award from the Washington D.C. based Corporate Council on Africa, which promotes trade and investment ties between the USA and Africa. In July 2013, he became the first African Airline CEO to receive “The Airline Strategy Award for Regional Leadership” in the award’s 12 year history. The Award is given out annually by Airline Business Magazine, a publication of Flight Global, the world’s leading aviation media brand. In November 2013, Mr. Tewolde won the 2013 “Planet Africa professional Excellence Award”. In July 2014, Ethiopian Airlines Board of Directors recognized Mr. Tewolde by awarding him a Gold Medal for this exceptional leadership, dedication and hard work, which have enabled Ethiopian Airlines to register outstanding performance as per its fast, profitable and sustainable growth strategy, Vision 2025. In addition to his duties as CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, he also serves as a member of the Board of Governors of the International Air Transport Association (IATA); Executive Committee member of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA); Board Member of EthioTelecom; Chairman of the Board of the Ethiopian Tourism Organization; Board Member of Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, and a member of the AIRLINK Advisory Council. He earned his B.A. Degree in Economics from the Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia and his Masters Degree in Business Administration from the Open University in the United Kingdom. | |
| Professor Rigas Doganis Chairman European Aviation Club Prof. Rigas Doganis has acted as aviation consultant and strategy adviser to numerous airlines, airports, banks and governments around the world. He is currently a non-executive director of easyJet, Europe’s second largest low-cost airline, and was previously a non-executive director of South African Airways. He sits on the Board of Hyderabad Airport in India and is Chairman of the European Aviation Club in Brussels. Prof. Doganis served as Chairman and CEO of Olympic Airways in Athens from Feb-1995 to Apr-1996 and successfully implemented a major restructuring programme which produced Olympic’s first profit in 18 years. He set up and headed the Department of Air Transport at Cranfield University (UK) from 1991 until 1997 and established it as the pre-eminent academic centre in Europe for post-graduate teaching and research in air transport. He is now a Visiting Professor at Cranfield.
From 1976 until 1992 he was Visiting Professor in Airline Management at the Asian School of Management in Manila. Prof. Doganis has acted as aviation consultant and strategy adviser to numerous airlines, airports, banks and governments around the world. He was until recently a non-executive director of easyJet, Europe’s second largest low-cost airline, and was previously a non-executive director of South African Airways and of Hyderabad Airport in India .He is Chairman of the European Aviation Club in Brussels.
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| Mr Matthew Baldwin Deputy Director General, DG MOVE European Commission Matthew Baldwin is Deputy Director General of DG MOVE at the European Commission, with responsibility for the transport "modes" – land (road and rail), waterborne (including ports policy) and aviation – and intermodality. He has held this post since July 2016. He was previously Head of the Cabinet of Commissioner Jonathan Hill from 2014-16, who was responsible for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union. His work in the Commission has focused mainly on trade policy and transport policy. He was Director of Aviation and International Transport Policy from 2011-14, and as Director of Market Access in DG Trade from 2010-11. He served in President Barroso's Cabinet from 2007-10, where he was responsible for issues relating to trade, energy, development and climate change, and he served as Deputy Head of Commissioner Lamy's cabinet from 1999- 2004 where he coordinated the trade policy portfolio overall with a particular focus on multilateral trade policy and EU-US trade relations. Before joining the Commission, he worked for the British Government from 1989-1999 in a variety of posts in London, Brussels and Washington relating to trade, energy, competition policy and postal services. He was born in 1963 in the UK and was educated at Oxford (where he received a BA Hons in Philosophy, Politics and Economics) and Harvard (where he was awarded a Master's degree in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government). He is married with two sons, and is a committed cyclist. | |
| Mr Giorgio De Roni Go Air Former CEO A professional with over 30 years’ experience in the aviation business, Mr De Roni’s last assignment in the aviation industry was as Chief Executive Officer at Go Airlines India. Prior to this, he had a long stint with Air One, Italian leading private airline with over 60 aircraft, 3,000 employees and a turnover of over USD1 billion. As Chief Revenue Officer in Air One his responsibilities covered sales & marketing, fleet & network planning, revenue management and alliance. He recently joined a biotech company as equity partner and Managing Director but still keeps consultancy roles in the airline industry. | |
| Laurens van den Oever CMO ForwardKeys Laurens recently joined the Valencia based travel analytics startup ForwardKeys as their CMO. ForwardKeys allows companies operating in the travel ecosystem to better anticipate demand by having real-time access to who’s traveling tomorrow in any part of the world. After his studies at the Breda University he completed his master in retail marketing, and started at KLM and Ericsson to continue his career at GfK, one of the leading market insights companies worldwide. In various roles and for different industries he developed new ways of monitoring consumer demand. In his previous role he was responsible for all Travel & Hospitality activities within GfK. Laurens mission is to scale down data complexity towards down-to-earth core take-always, powered by a wealth of knowledge coming from a young company with a big ambition. | |
| Luis Gallego Chairman & CEO Iberia Luis Gallego holds a degree in Aeronautical Engineering from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and an Executive Development Programme (EDD) qualification from the IESE School of Business. He began his career in the Spanish Air Force, and has since worked in Aviaco, INDRA and, between 1997 and 2006, in several positions with the Iberia franchise partner Air Nostrum, where he became technical manager of workshop maintenance until his transfer to Clickair, prior to its merger with Vueling. At Vueling, Luis Gallego worked in the Production department, with responsibility for flight operations, training, quality, safety, maintenance, and ground operations. Luis Gallego was CEO of Iberia Express from 2012 until he was appointed Iberia’s CEO on the 27th of March 2013. Since the 1st of January 2014, he is also Iberia’s Chairman. He is also member of IAG’s Management Committee. In Iberia, Luis Gallego is leading the transformation and modernization process of the Spanish airline. In his first year as CEO year, he was able to cut the airline’s losses by half, while in his second year in office, he’ll be able to make Iberia profitable after six years of operating losses. Additionally, he has reached labour agreements with all Iberia’s staff groups to reduce labour costs and increase employees’ productivity. Since then, Iberia’s quality and recommendation indexes of the airline’s customers have reached a record level and the airline has become one of the world’s most punctual airlines. | |
| Birkir Holm Gudnason CEO Icelandair Birkir Holm Gudnason was appointed CEO of Icelandair in May 2008, after serving with the company from 2000. Birkir has been 16 years with Icelandair. Birkir has been with Icelandair in Iceland, North America, Continental Europe and Scandinavia. Earlier posts at Icelandair include Sales Manager in Iceland 2000-2002, Sales & Marketing Manager in North America 2002-2005, General Manager for Central Europe, situated in Frankfurt, 2005-2006, and General Manager for Scandinavia, situated in Copenhagen, from 2006 – 2008 before taking over as CEO of Icelandair in May 2008. Birkir studied in Aalborg, Denmark, 1995-2000 and holds a B.Sc. degree in Business Economics and an MBA degree in International Business Economics from Aalborg University. Birkir is the Chairman of the Board of the American Icelandic Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the Board of the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce and sits on the board of Íslandsstofa (Promote Iceland). | |
| Dr Zheng Lei President Institute for Aviation Research Dr Zheng Lei is the Founder and President of the Institute for Aviation Research, an independent think tank with a particular focus on China. He is also the Director of Centre for Aviation Research at the University of Surrey, UK, and Visiting Professor to Civil Aviation University of China. Zheng holds a PhD in Air Transport and Tourism Management from the University of Surrey. A distinctive feature of his research is its real-world and industry focus. He has research and consultancy experiences in such areas as airline business models, air transport regulation and policy analysis, air transport market analysis, as well as aviation, tourism and regional competitiveness. Zheng advises airlines, airports, aircraft manufacturers, aviation service providers, and civil aviation authorities around the world on strategic issues through research, consultancy and executive training courses. Born and raised in China, Zheng is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese and English. | |
| Mr John Grant Director JG Aviation Consultants Formerly Executive Vice President at OAG, the world’s leading aviation data supplier and prior to that position Managing Director of a UK based aviation consultancy that was twice voted the UK’s best aviation practice by the UK Airport Operators Association, John continues to work with OAG on major consultancy projects and provides industry support and strategic advice to OAG management. A regular speaker at industry events such as World Routes, PATA Conferences and ACI events, John is also an industry advisor to the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) and regular appears on business channels such as BBC World News, CNN and Bloomberg. In his successful consultancy career John has worked around the globe on major strategic projects including Malaysia Airports as a retained consultant for more than ten years; Lima Airport Peru, Amsterdam Schiphol, Perth Western Australia and for Frankfurt Airport on their overseas investment assets. | |
| Mr John Byerly Consultant John R. Byerly, Consultant John Byerly advises clients on the full range of international aviation issues, including negotiations, economic and environmental regulation, aviation safety and security, government relations, and strategic planning. John graduated with highest honors from the University of North Carolina, studied European and German law on a Fulbright Scholarship in Berlin, and received his JD from Yale in 1979. Upon graduation, he joined the State Department, serving thirty-one years in positions addressing American foreign policy, national security, and international economic relations. For almost a decade (2001-2010), John was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State responsible for market-opening air transport agreements with over 70 countries and led U.S. delegations in talks that secured Open Skies with Germany, France, the European Union, and Japan. He was active in the economic, legal, and environmental work of ICAO and helped implement the U.S. response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. | |
| Mr Pieter Groeneveld Vice President Network Planning KLM Pieter finished his Master degree in Business Economics at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam in 1995. After a short period working for Royal Dutch Shell in procurement Pieter joined KLM in 1997. His 1st assignment was to coordinate the introduction of the 6 Wave Hub System in AMS. Pieter succeeded his career within network planning as network planner Eastern Europe and later as Senior network planning for Asia Pacific. Pieter moved to the Cargo division in 2002 as Director Network planning followed by commercial functions as Director Cargo for High Tech and Fashion industries. Pieter returned in 2008 to KLM head office as Vice President Corporate Strategy and since 2010 responsible for the global network development of KLM in close cooperation with the VP network planning of Air France. | |
| Mr Pieter Elbers CEO KLM Royal Dutch Airlines As of October 15, 2014 Pieter Elbers is the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Air France KLM Group. His responsibility is to manage KLM overall strategy and performance with €10 bln revenues and 33.000 staff. In this role setting strategic priorities in order to leverage the company’s competitive advantage is his primary focus. He is also responsible for external affairs and the relationships with external and internal stakeholders, as well as for further developing and enhancing (joint venture) alliances and (Skyteam) partnerships. Furthermore, he is accountable for maintaining a customer focused, innovative and efficient organization and operation. He sees leading a motivated executive team and building a firm and fair corporate culture as an important corner stone in reaching his goals. Pieter Elbers has 23 years of experience in KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in various (executive) managerial positions, such as:
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| Declan Collier CEO London City Airport Declan Collier joined London City Airport as Chief Executive Officer in March 2012. Prior to his appointment, he was Chief Executive of the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) and Chairman of Aer Rianta International (ARI) since April 2005. During this time he oversaw the successful delivery of a £1.0 billion capital investment programme to modernise the aviation gateways to Ireland, a successful expansion of the DAA’s international airports business and growth in the financial performance of the group. Prior to joining the DAA, Declan worked with ExxonMobil, where he held a range of senior management and executive positions in Ireland and the UK. In his last role at ExxonMobil, he had responsibility for the management of a number of key global businesses in the alternative fuels sector, in addition to the management of the company’s European district heating businesses. He is the President of the World Board of Airports Council International (ACI), the representative body of airports worldwideand Past President of Airports Council International (ACI) (Europe) the representative body for European airports. He serves on the Board of the Airport Operators Association (AOA) UK, the representative body of UK airports. He is a Council member of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and is a Board director of London First. He is a Non-Executive Director of Allied Irish Banks Group UK Ltd (AIB) where he is Chair of the Remuneration Committee. He was a Non-Executive Director of Allied Irish Banks, plc from January 2009 until August 2012. He is Chairman of the Dublin Theatre Festival and Chairman of the Irish Theatre Trust. A native of Dublin, he has a Masters Degree in Economics from Trinity College Dublin. | |
| Graham Floater EGC Director London School of Economics Graham is Managing Director of Seneca and EGC Director at the LSE. He is a former advisor to the UK Prime Minister and deputy director at HM Treasury. His research interests include international trade, market analysis, finance, and smart cities. | |
| Ms. Regula Dettling-Ott Vice-President EU Affairs Lufthansa Group Prof. Dr. iur. Regula Dettling-Ott, attorney-at-law, joined Lufthansa in 2010 as Vice-President EU Affairs. She is responsible to handle regulatory and industry affairs at EU level for the Lufthansa Group. Prior to working for Lufthansa, Regula Dettling-Ott was handling International Relations & Government Affairs at Swiss International Air Lines. Before joining SWISS, she worked as an attorney for many years (partner in a Swiss law firm), specializing in air law including liability matters and accident investigations after major air disasters as well as regulatory matters such as traffic right issues and airport regulation. Regula Dettling-Ott is a graduate of the University of Bern (Switzerland) and has done post-graduate studies at Georgetown University (Washington D.C). She holds a doctorate of the University of Bern and is a member of its faculty (Habilitation). She lectures on air law, has published extensively on various subjects in aviation and participated in many global aviation conferences. | |
| Riccardo Boin Associate Partner McKinsey & Company Riccardo co-leads McKinsey's Travel, Transport & Logistics Practice in Southern Europe and the Pricing & Revenue Management Service Line globally. In his 8 years at McKinsey Riccardo has served multiple airlines in Europe, South America, Asia, and Africa, primarily in strategic and commercial transformations. Riccardo holds a Masters in Business Administration from Columbia Business School (New York, USA) and a Master of Science in Accounting & Corporate Finance from Università Bocconi (Milan, Italy) | |
| Georgie Farmer Group Manager, Global Travel, Events & Expense Microsoft Procurement Georgie has over 12 years experience in procurement and travel management. She joined Microsoft Asia in 2008 and now has global responsibility for the sourcing of travel and payments, including the strategy for program content andsupplier management. Microsoft’s program spans 115 countriesand has more than 75,000 travelers. Prior to Microsoft, Georgie was the VP Travel APAC for JPMorgan Chase, and before moving into procurement had over 10 years experience in the payments and airline industries. Georgie sits on the global Board of ACTE and holds a MBA from the Australian Graduate School Entrepreneurship. | |
| Mr Patee Sarasin CEO NOK Air Patee Sarasin is the Chief Executive Officer of Nok Air, the truly Thai low fare airline. Patee received his secondary education in England at Kings School, Canterbury, and then spent his college years in the U.S.A., receiving a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration and Computer Science from Clark University, in Massachusetts, and a Masters Degree in Mass Communication Film and Video from American University in Washington, D.C. Patee launched his career with advertising agency Lintas in 1983, as a Research Manager, and then took a 2 year break to complete his masters degree, followed by 2 years with NBC, the U.S. television network, on both the creative and production side. Returning to Thailand in 1989, he joined SPA Advertising as Creative Liaison officer and a member of the Management Committee, and in 1991 became General Manager of Multi Media Orbit, a production house of SPA. In 1992 Patee was appointed Managing Director and later CEO of Bates Advertising Thailand, a joint venture between SPA and Bates Worldwide. Under Patee’s management, Bates Thailand became the fastest growing advertising agency in Thailand, and included the famed creation of DTAC and its launch into the market. In early 2004 Patee left Bates to join the new airline that was to become Nok Air as Chief Executive Officer, and has been a driving force behind the success of the airline, utilizing his marketing background and experiences and effectively applying them to Nok Air. Under Patee’s leadership Nok Air has seen continuous growth in terms of revenue, passenger numbers and destinations, as it reaches from its base in Thailand across Asia. Today Nok Air has already recovered the initial investment just after only two years of operation, and she continuously is growing towards a strong, profitable and a healthy company. As his aviation career takes off, he continues to be invited to speak at various international aviation symposiums around the world including those in Hong Kong, Singapore, London, Sydney, New York and Houston. Patee is currently an advisor to Minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand. He is also an active and consultant to the Thailand Squash Team. | |
| Huub van Rumund Procurement Account Manager Business Travel and Lease Cars | PPP Procurement NPR Oce Technologies BV Huub van Rumund started his career in the travel industry with Holland International Travel in 1978 as reservation employee at a local travel office. Until 1999 Huub van Rumund fulfilled several jobs within Holland International Travel and Philips Electronics Travel agency. In 1999 he moved to Philips Electronics Corporate Purchasing to be a member of the global travel team at Philips Electronics. January 2003 Huub van Rumund moved to Océ-Technologies where he is currently working as Procurement Account Manager at the PPP Procurement NPR department and responsible for the Océ Global business travel program with offices in The Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium, Hungary, Romania, Singapore, Canada and the USA. He is also a Board Member of CORTAS. Huub is married and has two children, a son and a daughter. | |
| Stefan Stroh Partner PriceWaterhouseCoopers Stefan Stroh is a partner with Strategy&, the strategy consulting unit of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). He has over 25 years experience in management consulting and leads the Transport and Logistics practice of PwC in Europe, Middle East and Africa as well as the firms digital services platform for the T&L industry. Stefan has worked with airlines, travel companies, railways, logistics service providers, retail and high-tech firms in Europe an globally on strategy development and transformation programs. Stefan is an expert in digital strategy, restructuring and organization effectiveness, and M&A. Stefan graduated as an engineer from Technical University of Darmstadt and received the Claudius Dornier foundation award for his research in airfoil design | |
| Akbar Al Baker Group Chief Executive Qatar Airways Mr. Akbar Al Baker has been instrumental in shaping the development of Qatar Airways into one of the fastest growing and most highly acclaimed airlines in the world – named Airline of the Year 2015, 2012, 2011 and runner up in 2014, and 2013 by global industry audit Skytrax. Mr. Al Baker has spearheaded the growth of Qatar Airways, which operated only four aircraft in a regional capacity prior to his appointment. Qatar Airways currently flies 177 aircraft to more than 150 destinations across six continents. Mr. Al Baker is the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Arab Air Carriers Organisation (AACO), a member of the Board of Governors of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and is a non-executive Director of Heathrow Airport Holdings (HAH). AACO is the organisation responsible for the development of the airline industry in the Arab world, IATA is the world regulatory body of airlines, and HAH is the company responsible for the running and development of the UK’s largest airport. A highly motivated individual, Mr. Al Baker has been a successful businessman in Doha for more than 25 years, holds a private pilot licence, and is also CEO of several divisions of Qatar’s national airline – these being Qatar Executive, Hamad International Airport, Qatar Aviation Services, Qatar Aircraft Catering Company, Qatar Distribution Company, Qatar Duty Free and Internal Media Services. Born in Doha, he is a graduate in Economics and Commerce and worked at various levels in the Civil Aviation Directorate before becoming Qatar Airways’ Group Chief Executive in 1997. | |
| Mr David O'Brien Chief Commercial Officer Ryanair David O’Brien was appointed Chief Commercial Officer on 1st January 2014 having previously served as Ryanair’s Director of Flight & Ground Operations from December 2002. A graduate of the Irish Military College, David followed a military career with positions in the airport sector and Agribusiness in the Middle East, Russia and Asia. David is married with four children. | |
| Pramod Jain VP Marketing & Solution Management Sabre Pramod Jain is currently serving the role as Vice President, Marketing and Solution Management for Sabre AirVision. In his current role, Pramod Jain leads an organization responsible for a portfolio comprised of products and consulting services surrounding our Planning & Scheduling, Pricing & Revenue Management, Revenue Accounting, Cargo Revenue Management and In-flight solutions. In addition, Pramod will manage Sabre’s newly acquired Airpas organization including the industry’s leading solutions for cost management and route profitability. In his previous role, Pramod Jain was responsible for the general management and daily operations of the office as well as the business leadership of industry’s leading top flight management solutions utilized by 40% of the world’s flights. The family of solutions Pramod led delivered low-cost flight plans, a shared operational picture, and increased productivity. Prior to joining Sabre Austria, Pramod ran another acquisition business as Managing Director, Sabre Iceland tasked with integrating the Icelandic Big-data/Analytics platform technology and team to broader Sabre family. Over the last 10 years, Pramod have had held several leadership positions in solution design, development and delivery for various airline business functions. Pramod started his career with Sabre Airline Solutions as an Operations Research Analyst where he was tasked with designing Complex Crew Recovery Algorithms. Pramod has over 8 years of experience in development as well as leading large delivery and consulting teams to implement multiple complex projects to airlines all over the world. Pramod is an Electrical Engineer and also holds a Master’s degree in Operations Research where he worked on research projects with Office of Naval Research in designing solutions for optimizing scheduling in ship manufacturing. Born in India, educated in States, work experience in US, Iceland and Austria- Pramod considers himself as a ‘Global Citizen’. Pramod loves traveling and enjoys spending time with his 18 month old daughter, watch tennis and cricket. | |
| Mr Johnny Thorsen Senior Director Value Services SAP Mobile Services Johnny is Senior Director Value Services with SAP Mobile Services. Prior to that he was the global product and strategy owner for Concur Messaging based in San Francisco, California since Concur acquired conTgo in March 2013. Prior to Concur Johnny spent 6 years as the co-founder and CEO of conTgo Ltd, being at the forefront of the mobile travel technology revolution, focusing on “point of experience” software for corporate travellers, while maintaining his strong links to the travel procurement and security areas.. Prior to launching conTgo, Johnny has held a range of senior positions in the travel technology industry with major players such as Travelport, Sabre, HRG and CWT. In January 2011 Johnny was named one the 25 most influential people in the global business travel industry by the US-based BTN magazine, reflecting the developments conTgo experienced since the major break-through during the ash cloud crisis in April 2010. | |
| Frank Skivington CCO Skyscanner Frank is Chief Commercial Officer at Skyscanner, with responsibility for all sales and business development globally. Prior to joining Skyscanner in 2008, Frank spent over 15 years in senior commercial roles in media and digital media, predominantly with SMG Plc and Newsquest Media Group. | |
| Perry Cantarutti CEO & MD SkyTeam Perry Cantarutti was appointed as SkyTeam’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director in November 2015. Based at the alliance’s headquarters in Amsterdam, Cantarutti is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the strategy and business plan of the alliance, maximizing its value for customers and members airlines. Bringing nearly 25 years industry experience to the role, Cantarutti joined SkyTeam from Delta Air Lines where he was Senior Vice President Europe Middle East and Africa. Throughout his career he has a track record of forging successful airline partnerships, including joint ventures, and driving customer-focused results. Cantarutti holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California – Berkeley and a master’s of business administration from Northwestern University. He also serves on the Northwestern University Transportation Center Business Advisory Committee. | |
| Mr Mark Schwab CEO Star Alliance Mark Schwab is Chief Executive Officer of Star Alliance Services GmbH. He and his team coordinate the development and strategies of the world’s first and most experienced global airline alliance from its base in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Seen today as a role model for the civil aviation industry the Alliance was founded in 1997, with the aim of offering worldwide reach, recognition and seamless service to the international traveller. By working together closely in Star Alliance, its member airlines are able to create and enhance products and services which cater to the needs of international travelers, as well as to develop joint IT solutions and to exploit the synergies that such large-scale, global collaboration can generate. Prior to assuming his role at Star Alliance in January 2012, Mark Schwab held numerous positions in the airline industry at United Airlines, US Airways and American Airlines. Most recently he was responsible for alliance activities at Star Alliance member airline United, where he was Senior Vice President Alliances. In this role he also served on the Management Board of the Star Alliance organisation. Mark Schwab began his aviation career in 1975 with Pan American World Airways in Rio de Janeiro and went on to head organisations in Latin America, Europe and Asia. He spent most of his career outside his home country, the United States of America. Mark Schwab has a degree in Latin American Affairs from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville and is fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese. He is married with two daughters. | |
| Mr Tassapon Bijleveld CEO Thai AirAsia Tassapon Bijleveld joined Thai AirAsia as Chief Executive Officer in 2003, since day one of the company’s establishment. He is entrusted with the responsibility of overseeing all aspects of the airline’s operations as well as boosting growth in Thailand. Currently, the airline has over 3,500 employees, and 44 brand new Airbus A320-200 planes. Today, Thai AirAsia flies to 53 international and domestic routes and has carried over 66 million passengers. Prior to joining Thai AirAsia, Tassapon was Managing Director of Warner Music (Thailand) Co. Ltd. for 5 years. Within 3 years, Tassapon turned the company around and placed Warner Music (Thailand) at the top, compared to other international music companies. It was also at Warner Music where he met Tony Fernandes, the founder of AirAsia and currently the Group CEO. Tassapon took a leap of faith and decided to try his luck in the low-cost airline industry, which was still a new and revolutionary concept at the time. His willingness to learn a new industry from scratch, and his can-do attitude has led Thai AirAsia to become the largest low-cost carrier in Thailand. Tassapon began his career at Warner-Lambert Thailand Ltd, in the confectionery division where he started as Assistant Product Manager and grew to Senior Product Manager with several posts in Asia. Prior to joining Thai AirAsia, Tassapon had acquired over 12 years of experience in the consumer product industry, working in various countries in South East Asia for two Fortune 500 companies - Adams (Thailand) Co. Ltd and Monsanto (Thailand) Co.Ltd . He spent five years with Monsanto as a pioneer, setting up the division from scratch before eventually building it into a multi- million dollar business in just a few years. Tassapon is well-known for his leadership and team-building ability. His business philosophy emphasizes the successful synergy between all departments within the company. Thai AirAsia’s success is a result of a passionate, motivated team with strong rapport and a can-do spirit. Tassapon holds a Master’s Degree in Marketing, and currently he is a part–time lecturer in several leading universities in Thailand. | |
| Daniel Friedli Managing Director & Partner Travel in Motion Daniel is passionate about travel. He supports travel related companies (airlines, rail companies, tour operators, travel agencies, software creators, etc.) understand the business value of customer experience, customer service, social engagement and consumer retailing. He supports travel companies in creating strategies, driving innovation and mentoring teams and moderating workshops to drive innovation, strategy thinking and business development strategies. Daniel has strong analytical skills and thoroughly enjoys communication with clients and customers. He is equally skilled in presenting a management brief to C-level management as well as to broad user groups. On several occasions, Daniel has presented at industry forums with viewpoints on innovation and trends such as social media, big data and mobility. He has worked on highly strategic projects to implement new ecommerce and retailing business solutions and processes for airlines. As a member of the IATA Simplifying the Business Think Tank from its inception in 2011 until early 2015, Daniel was at the forefront of creating the concepts around NDC and other areas focused on simplifying travel for consumers and improving the customer experience. Most recently, Daniel has concentrated on product innovation, strategy and business development. Consulting customers on the usage of social and digital media in ecommerce and customer care, and the power of data analytics in the context of airline retailing, improving operations and streamlining business processes has been at the centre of his focus. In this role, he strongly support the business development and sales teams in extending their reach. | |
| Mr Ian Heywood Global Head Product & Marketing, Air Commerce Travelport Ian has recently been appointed to the new role heading up Product and Marketing for the Air Commerce line of business. This role involves owning the overall responsibility and being fully accountable for end-to-end product life cycle management for all Air line of business products, from Conception (including customer research, commercial team input, R&D work and competitive analysis), Launch and Adoption (including customer operations and ongoing marketing/positioning), Ongoing growth and Product retirement/sunset. Ian joined Travelport 3.5 years ago where a key part of Ian’s work has been the launch of the Travelport Merchandising Platform with ‘Aggregated Shopping’ ‘Ancillary Services’ and ‘Rich Content and Branding’ which enables airlines to adapt their business models to whichever competitive/economic environment they operate in and for travel agents to access enhanced airline content in their normal workflow. Prior to Travelport, Ian spent the majority of his working life at British Airways, where he joined as an apprentice and held a number of commercial roles in the UK and overseas. He has also worked for Qatar Airways as SVP Global Sales and Distribution. | |
| Mr Derek Sharp Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Air Commerce Group Travelport Derek Sharp has global responsibility for Travelport’s commercial relationships with airlines and rail suppliers. In this role, he leads a worldwide team of sales, business development and operations experts focused on expanding and improving upon the company’s value proposition to the supplier community.In addition, Mr. Sharp also manages Travelport’s airline IT solutions business, which delivers hosting and IT solutions to airlines around the world. Mr. Sharp joined Travelport in 2010 from EDS/HP where he held numerous senior roles in the US, Europe and Asia in strategic sales, corporate development and major account management. Prior to EDS/HP, Mr. Sharp worked as a management consultant with Bain & Company and as an international account executive with United Parcel Services (UPS).He has a BA in Political Science from Texas A&M University and an MBA from the Amos Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. Mr. Sharp lives in London with his wife, Missy, and their two children. | |
| Mike Whitaker Former Deputy Administrator & Chief NextGen Officer U.S. FAA Michael Whitaker was appointed by President Obama as Deputy Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration in June 2013. He is responsible for helping to ensure the safe and efficient operation of the largest aerospace system in the world – with over 50,000 operations daily – as well as regulating the safety of equipment and operators of the U.S. aviation industry. Whitaker also serves as the Chief NextGen Officer and is responsible for the development and implementation of FAA’s NextGen modernization of the air traffic control system. Prior to joining the FAA, Whitaker spent 20 years in the aviation industry, first with TWA in New York and Washington, where he served as Assistant General Counsel, then for 15 years with United Airlines, where he rose to Senior Vice President responsible for Alliances, International and Regulatory Affairs. At United, Whitaker was responsible for the significant expansion of the airline’s international route and alliance network, and served on the management board of Star Alliance. Whitaker left United to become the Group Chief Executive Officer of InterGlobe Enterprises, the holding company that founded, owns and operates India’s largest airline, IndiGo, among other travel-related businesses. In 2014, Whitaker obtained his private pilot certificate as part of his commitment to fully understanding aviation technology and the challenges of general aviation.He is continuing his training toward an instrument rating. Whitaker holds bachelor degrees in Political Science and French from the University of Louisville, and graduated cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center. | |
| Mr Jim Callaghan General Counsel Uber Prior to joining Uber Jim Callaghan was Etihad Airways’ General Counsel and Company Secretary from May 2009 to 2016. Previously, he spent nine years at Europe’s largest low cost carrier, Ryanair Ltd, as Company Secretary and Director of Legal and Regulatory Affairs. At Ryanair, Mr Callaghan was responsible for setting up the airline’s legal function and for corporate governance and liaising with the Board. He actively manages a suite of ongoing regulatory and legal issues relating to competition law, trademarks, airport contracts, advertising standards, consumer law, and commercial litigation. Before joining Ryanair in 2000, Mr Callaghan spent several years at international law firms in the United States and in Brussels. He holds a Juris Doctorate and a Masters in Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh and a Masters in European and International Law from Vrije Universiteit in Brussels. | |
| Steve Hankinson VP Operations & Maintenance Vancouver Airport Authority Steve Hankinson joined the Airport Authority in 2007 as Director, Customer Care and Security. As Vice President, Operations and Maintenance, his responsibilities include groundside, terminal and airside operations, security, emergency planning, customer care and facility maintenance. | |
| Ms Siew Hoon Yeoh Founder and Editor Web in Travel Yeoh Siew Hoon founded Web In Travel in 2005. She saw a need for the industry to recognize and deal with the changes that would come from the Internet and technology. It started out as an annual conference (now held in partnership with ITB Asia) and has grown into a content and community portal for anyone passionate about the online travel space in Asia Pacific. Other than online travel, Siew Hoon is passionate about inspiring young minds – which WIT does through its WITNext vehicle – and entrepreneurship and innovation through its WIT Bootcamp. Siew Hoon is also a regular speaker and facilitator at travel industry conferences and workshops. She is also a published author, having written titles including “Truth, Lies & Other Stuff”, “Around Asia in 1 Hr: Tales of Condoms, Chillies & Curries” and “Losing My Innocence, Finding My Groove”. In 2009, she co-wrote a children’s book “The Adventures of Habibi, The Wise Turtle”, with 17-year-old Nigel Chee for Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa, Oman, to promote environmental awareness and conservation of green turtles in the Oman area. In August 2012, her second children’s book, “The Story Of Baitong & Boon”, which she c0-wrote with 16-year-old Phantila Phataraprasit, was published. | |
| Mr Jozsef Varadi Founder & CEO Wizz Air József Váradi is the founder and CEO of Wizz Air, the largest low-cost airline in Central and Eastern Europe. The company’s low-cost leader strategy has transformed the airline from being one of the many start-ups in 2004 to one of the major European players today. Wizz Air has carried 20 million passengers in the last 12 months and is well on track to continue its ambitious double-digit growth in the coming years. Currently the airline offers flights from 25 bases connecting 125 destinations across and beyond Europe. Wizz Air’s current fleet consists of 73 Airbus A320 and Airbus 321 aircraft, while it has 140 aircraft on order from the manufacturer, including the recently announced A321 NEO purchase, to be delivered over the course of the next decade. In early 2015 Wizz Air Holdings Plc carried out a successful IPO and was admitted to the London Stock Exchange. The Company's current market capitalization is around 3 billion euros. Before conceiving the idea of Wizz Air, Mr Váradi led Malev Hungarian National Airline between 2001 and 2003.During his time as CEO, the company underwent a major turnaround program including organizational restructuring and a complete fleet renewal. The change resulted in a significant improvement of results, cutting losses by 80%. Prior to joining the airline industry, Mr. Váradi worked in the FMCG sector. He started his carrier at Procter & Gamble in 1991 as sales manager and moved up fast to become one of the company’s youngest executives by 1999. He left P&G as Sales Director for Global Customers, responsible for major clients throughout 11 European countries. Mr. Váradi currently serves on the Board of Directors of Wizz Air Holdings Plc. In the last 10 years, he also held numerous board memberships with companies such as Lufthansa Technik Budapest (Supervisory Board, 2001-2003), Wizz Air Bulgaria (Chairman, Board of Directors, 2005-2009), Wizz Air Ukraine (Chairman, Board of Directors, 2008-2009), Mandala Airlines (Board of Commissioners, 2007-2011) and Wizz Tours (Chairman, 2015- ). Mr. Váradi graduated from the Budapest University of Economic Sciences and holds a Master’s Degree in Economics. He also obtained a Master of Laws from the University of London. | |
| David Scowsill President & CEO World Travel & Tourism Council Prior to joining WTTC in November 2010, David worked for 6 years in private equity and venture capital, completing deals in technology and travel sectors. David was CEO of Opodo, pan-European online travel company from 2002 to 2004, building the business from start up to a €500mn transaction turnover, before it was sold to Amadeus. He joined the board of Hilton International in 1997 as senior VP sales, marketing and IT, leading the brand re-unification programme between the two Hilton shareholder companies. David rejoined British Airways from 1993 to 1997 as regional general manager Asia/Pacific. He established the Joint Service Agreement and global alliance with Qantas. He joined American Airlines in 1991 as managing director sales, Europe Middle East and Africa. David’s earlier career was with British Airways, with a variety of operational and sales roles in US, Europe, Latin America, Gulf States, Africa, and Asia. | |
| Skuli Mogensen Founder & CEO WOW Air Skuli Mogensen is the founder and CEO of WOW air. He has over 20 years of broad and business experience in the technology, telecoms and venture capital industries as investor, CEO and Entrepreneur. Skuli is an active speaker on both sides of the Atlantic. He has been recognized as one of Europe’s top entrepreneurs based on his work at OZ Communications, which he co-founded and was the CEO and chairman of. OZ was acquired by Nokia in November 2008. Currently he is the CEO and a board member of WOW air, Vice Chairman of the board of MP Bank in Iceland and a board member of Cargo Express, Carbon Recycling International and Redline Communications, publicly traded company on Toronto Stock Exchange (RDL). Skuli is an active triathlete, co-founder of WOW Cyclothon, which is a charity event for different charities each year and an active sponsor of charities and artists. He was selected a Businessperson of the Year 2011 in Iceland. | |
