Speaker Biographies

Confirmed speakers

Moderators

Antti Peltomäki

Deputy Director-General, DG ENTR, European Commission

Mr Antti Peltomäki is Deputy Director-General of the Enterprise and Industry Directorate-General since February 2012. In this function, Mr Peltomäki is responsible for regulatory policy including internal market and standardisation, sustainable growth and EU 2020 which includes industrial innovation and mobility industries, textiles, chemicals, metals, mechanical, electrical industries, raw materials, tourism and key enabling technologies.

Before that, Mr Peltomäki was Deputy Director-General in the Information Society and Media Directorate General where he was firstly responsible for research cooperation in the context of the seventh research framework (2007-2013) and thereafter for regulatory policy in the telecommunications, media and internet fields.

Mr Peltomäki has also worked as Head of the Commission's representation in Helsinki in 2006 – 2007.

Prior to joining the Commission in 2006, Mr Peltomäki worked for almost ten years in the office of the Prime Minister of Finland, initially as State Under-Secretary, then State Secretary for EU affairs.

A lawyer by training, Mr Peltomäki began his career as a coordinator of international research and training courses at the Helsinki University of Technology.

Vicky Ford

Chair of the IMCO Committee, European Parliament

Vicky Ford was elected a Member of the European Parliament in 2009. She is the leading Conservative MEP for the East of England and is Chairman of the European Parliament Internal Market and Consumer Affairs Committee. She is also the UK Conservative Party spokesman on the Internal Market and Consumer Affairs.

From 2009-2014 Vicky was a member of the European Parliament Industry, Research and Energy Committee and the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee. She was UK Conservative Party Spokesman on Economic and Monetary Affairs from 2009-2011 and on Industry and Research from 2011-2014.

Vicky was the Parliament rapporteur on the budgetary framework directive, which seeks to increase transparency and accountability of public spending. In addition, she was also the rapporteur on the safety of offshore gas and the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership. She was a lead negotiator on the Horizon 2020 program for research and development and for reforms to banking regulation.

Vicky has worked as shadow rapporteur for the European Conservatives and Reformist Group (ECR) on energy efficiency legislation and all research funding matters, as well as bank capital requirements, deposit guarantee schemes and residential mortgages. She campaigns to reduce bureaucracy for business, to reduce the EU budget and to end the Strasbourg two seat circus.

Cindy Miller

President, UPS Europe

Cindy Miller, a 25-year UPS veteran, has been president of UPS Europe since April 2013, making her responsible for all UPS operations in more than 120 countries and territories across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). The EMEA region is UPS’s largest non-U.S. operation.

Miller, a native of Tamaqua, Pennsylvania, USA, has held several key executive positions at UPS, such as president of UPS South Europe and Africa, as well as similar roles in the U.S. She began working for UPS as a package car driver and, like many UPSers, worked her way up through positions of increasing responsibility.

Her most recent assignment was president of UPS U.K., Ireland and the Nordics where she was the leader responsible for UPS’s outstanding performance as Official Logistics and Express Delivery Supporter of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. This included the oversight and execution of innovative sustainability solutions through UPS’s technology and logistics solutions.

Miller, 50, has in-depth experience and knowledge of the EMEA region, having served in senior executive positions in Europe since 2008.

Werner Stengg

Head of Unit - Online and Postal Services, DG MARKT, European Commission

Born 1968 in Friesach, Austria.

Studied at Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration (master's degree 1992, PhD 1995).

Professional experience:
• Assistant Professor at Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration (1992-1996);
• Administrator at the General Secretariat of the European Council of Ministers, Brussels; air and maritime transport (1996-1998);
• Administrator at the European Commission, DG Enterprise, in charge of negotiating bilateral textile agreements between the EU and third countries (1998-2001);
• Assistant to the Deputy Director General of DG Enterprise (2001-2002);
• Administrator at DG Budget, in charge of evaluation (2002-2006);
• Head of Unit in DG Internal Market and Services, in charge of "Impact Assessment, Evaluation and Economic Analysis" (2006-April 2011);
• Head of Unit in DG Internal Market and Services, in charge of "Online and Postal Services" (April 2011-present).

Tod Cohen

Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Government Relations, eBay Inc.

Tod Cohen serves as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of Global Government Relations for eBay Inc.

Since 2000, Mr. Cohen has been responsible for global public policy for eBay, adding PayPal when it was acquired in 2002. Beginning in 2006, he took on responsibility for eBay’s regulatory work, as well as law enforcement affairs and global investigations. His team of over 100 employees includes lawyers, lobbyists, external affairs specialists, and investigators in more than 20 cities around the world. He opened eBay’s first government relations’ office in March 2000 in Washington DC and now leads his group from eBay’s corporate headquarters in San Jose.

Prior to joining eBay, Mr. Cohen was Vice President and Counsel of New Media for the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). Before that, Mr. Cohen served as European Vice President and Legal Counsel for the Business Software Alliance in London. He also spent six years as an associate with the Washington law firm, Covington & Burling.

Mr. Cohen formerly served as a member of the U.S. Department of Commerce/U.S. Trade Representative’s Industry Trade Advisory Committee for Information and Communications Technologies, Services, and Electronic Commerce. He also served as Vice Chairman of the Free Trade Agreement of the America’s Joint Experts’ Committee on Electronic Commerce.

Mr. Cohen received his B.A. from the University of Utah in 1985, and his J.D. with Highest Honors from the George Washington University Law School in 1992. Before law school, Mr. Cohen worked as a Congressional aide for four years.

Eimear Creaven

Head of European Strategic Merchant, MasterCard

Miss Creaven joined the European Market Development team in July 2014 to lead MasterCard’s efforts working with global and pan-regional merchants in Europe. Eimear’s team focuses on three core merchant verticals, namely retail, including petrol merchants; travel and entertainment; and digital/e-commerce players.

Eimear joined MasterCard in 2012 as Chief of Staff to Ann Cairns, President of International Markets. In this role, she supported the executive team in a broad range of strategic and operational activities.

Prior to joining MasterCard, Eimear was a Director with Alvarez & Marsal in London for three years. She managed and led teams of professionals advising banks in the UK, Iceland, Ireland and Greece. She was a member of the team leading the Lehman Brothers Chapter 11 process in the UK and led the onsite team advising the Kaupthing Resolution Board during the bank’s wind-down in Iceland.

Previously, Eimear was Vice-President with Allied Irish Banks based in Dublin and New York for seven years. She worked in a number of positions in capital markets, most recently with the High Yield Trading desk in New York, where she managed leveraged and distressed assets on behalf of the bank and external investors.

Eimear holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the National University of Ireland, Galway and a MBA from INSEAD in France and Singapore.

Eimear is a board member with the London based charity, Irish Youth Foundation and supports a number of other local and international philanthropic organisations. She is a keen runner and cyclist and has participated in triathlons in the UK. Eimear loves to travel and to experience new cultures. She has lived and worked in Australia, New Zealand, the U.S., France, Singapore, Iceland, Ireland, Greece and the U.K. She grew up riding horses and captained her university team to gold at The National Equestrian Intervarsity Championships.

Ursula Pachl

Deputy Director General, BEUC

Ms. Pachl has been with BEUC since October 1997, first as Legal Advisor, then as Senior Policy Advisor and presently as Deputy Director General.

BEUC represents 41 independent national consumer associations from 31 European countries. The primary task of BEUC is to act as a strong consumer voice in Brussels and to try to ensure that consumer interests are given their proper weight in the development of all Community policies. Apart from deputising for the Director General, Ms. Pachl is leading BEUC’s work on the consumer legislation acquis and is responsible for horizontal and strategic policy issues.

Prior to working for BEUC, Ms. Pachl worked at the Austrian Federal Ministry of Health and Consumer Protection in Vienna and at the Austrian Consumer Information Association as a member of the Consumer Advisory Board.

Ms. Pachl is the author of several articles in consumer policy and law journals.

Michael Boarer

Co-founder and Executive Director, Profulfilment.com

An experienced director with a 25 year track record in the leadership of teams in a variety of industries in the public and private sector. These include Postal, International Banking, Government, Logistics, Telecommunications and IT services. He is Co-founder and Executive Director for Profulfilment.com a Global logistics company with fulfilment centres in UK, Europe, Asia and USA.

Since the early days of profulfilment.com he has worked with clients across all sectors in the delivery of integration projects, and has also tailored the company’s WMS, infrastructure and IT programme. Michael has significant experience of developing business cases including the assessment of market factors, the operational and IT implications and the political climate. For Santander Private Bank he was responsible for a £multi-million IT outsource project and service contract implementation as well as development of the bank’s offshore internet banking platform in 2004-7.

In the Telco field in the 1990’s he had technical responsibility for high speed fibre optic transmission systems, international submarine cable plant and digital Microwave radio systems for international voice and data services. During his career he has had the opportunity to study at Cranfield School of management in the UK, Insead business school in France and IBM business centres in the USA. He is also a keen supporter of Myers Briggs psychometric assessment tool and his type is INTJ!

He is a Fellow of the British Computer Society (FBCS) and also a qualified private pilot with over 700 hours flying experience and holds the FAA Instrument Rating. When not working he might be found mountain-biking, skiing, sea kayaking or mountain climbing!

Dirk Staudenmayer

Head of Unit – Contract Law, DG Justice, European Commission

From July 2010:
Head of Unit “Contract law”, Directorate-General Justice.

From November 2003 to July 2010:
Head of Unit “Financial services and redress”, Directorate-General Health and Consumers

From August 1999 to January 2004:
Assistant to the Director-General, Directorate-General Health and Consumer Protection.

February 1999 – July 1999:
Assistant to the Director, Directorate A Consumer Policy, Directorate General XXIV – Consumer Policy and Consumer Health Protection.

January 1998 – January 1999:
Unit “Policy Development” and Assistant to the Director, Directorate General XXIV – Consumer Policy and Consumer Health Protection.

May 1996 - December 1997:
Unit “Transactions”, Directorate General XXIV – Consumer Policy

July 1994 - April 1996:
Unit “Drafting and implementation of legislation”, Consumer Policy Service.

EDUCATION

June 2001: PhD magna cum laude, University of Bonn, Doctorate thesis with regard to EC competition law.
July 1992: Summer course on Private International Law at the Academy of International Law, The Hague/The Netherlands.
October 1990 - May 1991: Postgraduate studies of EC Law at the Centre Européen Universitaire, Nancy/France. (Diplôme d’Etudes Supérieures Européennes and Diplôme d’Etudes Approfondies de Droit Communautaire).
November 1985 - July 1990: Law School of the University of Erlangen – Nürnberg,
Germany.

PUBLICATIONS and ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES:
Numerous publications in particular in the areas of European contract, consumer, competition and education law.
Honorary professor of the Law Faculty of the University of Münster/Germany.
Associate editor of two law reviews.

Mark Harrison

Head of Markets, International Post Corporation

Mark Harrison joined IPC in 2002 and is the Head of Markets. The Markets team comprises experienced analysts and researchers specialising in industry intelligence and research. The team provides essential knowledge on trends affecting the strategic direction of the postal industry, while assisting postal operators to achieve profitable growth through innovation. Being an independent research body at the heart of the postal industry means that findings are objective, non-partisan and cost-effective.

The analysis and insight of the IPC Markets team feeds into Senior Executive Forums on Direct Mail, and Parcels and Express, Postal Best Practice Seminars, Strategic Perspectives, Direct Marketing Intelligence, Environmental Measurement and Monitoring System, Postal Sector Sustainability, Global Postal Industry Report, Carrier Intelligence and the IPC Statistical Database.

Prior to IPC, Mark worked for Royal Mail for 14 years in both the International and Electronic Service business units where he undertook a variety of marketing and operational roles.

Mark has a degree in Chemistry from the City University in London, a Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing and an MBA from Westminster University, London.

Chris Sherwood

Head of Public Policy, Allegro Group

Chris Sherwood joined the Allegro Group in 2013 as Head of Public Policy. He is the first permanent Brussels public policy professional to be employed by a European Internet company. He has responsibility for all of the Allegro Group’s public policy issues. Chris previously worked for Yahoo! as Director for Public Policy, and at the US Department of Commerce at the US Mission to the EU, where he worked on ICT sector-related issues, including privacy and environmental rules.

He has also been a public affairs consultant in Brussels and an IT systems implementation consultant. He has Masters Degrees in German and European Studies. He speaks fluent English, French, German, and Polish. He has UK, French, and US nationalities.

The Allegro Group is the leading Central and East European e-commerce company, with consumer-focused businesses in 16 countries spanning e-marketplaces, e-retail, online classified ads, and e-payments. Its headquarters are in Poznań.

John Knorr

CEO, Uglii

John Knorr was born in 1949 in Melbourne. His father was the sculptor Hans Knorr and his mother Hilde Knorr was a writer of note, having had 17 books published.

John entered local politics in his early twenties and was the youngest Shire President ever elected in the State of Victoria at that time.

At 26 John was appointed by the Victorian Government as Chairman of the committee that wrote groundbreaking legislation for the first authority that controlled land use for an important region that had power over Local Government, State Government and National Government. This was the first authority in the history of Australia to have the Australian government cede power over land use back to a State Authority.

At that time the only similar thing had only been done by the Tennessee Valley authority in the US .

John has extensive experience in small business and local government and is the co-founder, chairman & CEO, of Uglii Corporation Limited, the company which owns the Uglii system and brand.

John has been married to his wife, Heather, co-founder of Uglii, for 20 years.

John is committed to establishing the Uglii system as the World leader in the areas of Global Business Discovery and Marketplace Trading. Since 1998, he has been developing and enhancing spatial discovery technology and associated patents to support this objective.

The Uglii system is now offering national level partnering opportunities to postal systems, banks, telcos, industry organizations and broadcast media.

John's key objectives also include the provision of strong outcomes for both investors and business partners.

His interests include Australian Rules football, politics and playing tennis. John supports research for spinal cord injuries.

Jörgen Bödmar

President, EMOTA

Mr Jörgen Bödmar is the President of EMOTA, the European Multi-channel and Online Trade Association.

He is the founder and CEO for Scandinavian Design Center, Sweden. He has his background in Executive Search and Recruitment as well as working with HR in Scandinavian Airlines.

The company was founded 2002 based on a vision to make it possible to buy Scandinavian Design home interior products globally using the Internet. Today, customers from seventy countries buy design products and get them delivered within a week.

James Waterworth

Vice-President Europe, Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA)

James Waterworth is Vice-President, Europe for the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) advising members and policy makers on a wide range of issues including intellectual property, international trade and internet regulation. He brings with him more than a decade of experience in technology policy having held government affairs posts for Nokia, Cable and Wireless and Telefonica in Brussels and London.

As Director of Government Affairs for Nokia he lead calls for the European Union to create a Digital Single Market; a unified market to the advantage of business and consumers. He took Nokia into the field of internet policy for the first time. From 2007 to 2008 he worked for the Nokia CTO on media relations.

Between 2001 and 2005 he worked in London for Cable & Wireless and then Telefonica UK on telecommunications network regulation, most notably on the regulation of the wholesale broadband market and the structural separation of the former UK telecommunications incumbent BT.

Between 2009 and 2012 he was President of the European Digital Media Association.

He has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and French from the University of Leeds and a master’s degree in European Politics from the University of London.

Harrie Temmink

Deputy Head of Unit Online and Postal Services, European Commission

Harrie Temmink is currently Deputy Head of the Online and Postal unit at DG Internal Market and Services, European Commission.

Harrie has a Dutch Law degree and a Spanish Language and Literature degree from the University of Utrecht (the Netherlands). After his studies he became a lecturer in Public Economic Law at the same university while part-time working at the Netherlands Competition Authority. From 2000-2003, he served as a Legal Secretary at the Court of Justice of the European Communities (Luxembourg). In the period 2003-2008 he was employed at the industrial property unit of DG Internal Market. From November 2009- February 2010 he was Member of Cabinet of Mrs Meglena Kuneva, Commissioner for Consumer Protection.

His publications concern, inter alia, the free movement of goods, persons and services; harmonisation of legislation, “flanking policies” (media, consumers, environment, culture, public health etc.); competition and state aids; IP law and Dutch public economic law. He is an editorial board member of the Netherlands Review of European Law (Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Europees Recht). Harrie Temmink further lectures at a number of universities and other institutions.

Stephanie Schmidt

Legal Assessor and Counsel, bevh

Stephanie Schmidt, born 1975, is legal adviser at bevh (Bundesverband E-Commerce und Versandhandel Deutschland e.V.), the German E-Commerce and Mail-Order Association. Prior to her current occupation, she worked as a Researcher for the Nagoya University Institute for Business Litigation in Freiburg. She was also project manager of the eCommerce Contact Point Germany and assisted consumers with cross-border-complaints in the former German clearing house in Kehl (former EEJ-net, now European Consumer Center).

Alex Dieke

Head of Department, Postal Services and Logistics, WIK-Consult GmbH

Alex Kalevi Dieke, born in 1975, is an economist by training and a graduate of Bonn University. He works with WIK Wissenschaftliches Insitut für Infrastruktur und Kommunikationsdienste (German for: ‘Scientific Institute for Infrastructure and Communications Services’) since 2000. WIK is a German research institute and consultancy specialised in regulatory policies for regulated industries. Since 2006, Alex manages WIK’s department for ‘Postal Services and Logistics’ and directs WIK’s consulting practice in the postal sector.

Alex provides research and consults on various issues related to regulation of postal markets, delivery logistics, international relations, and competition policy. He has prepared several postal studies for the European Commission, and led WIK-Consult project teams for postal regulators, ministries, trade associations, and postal operators in Europe and overseas. In 2014, Alex has directed a study on policies for promoting e-commerce and delivery markets for DG MARKT.

Susanne Czech

Secretary General, EMOTA

Ms Susanne Czech has been Secretary General of EMOTA, the Brussels-based European Multi-channel and Online Trade Association, since January 2007.

On behalf of its 16 national member associations, EMOTA advocates a barrier-free European single market for distance sales, off and online, and collaborates with business partners that actively encourage cross border distance selling across the European territory as a whole.

Before joining EMOTA, Ms Czech directed the Single Market and International Affairs Committees at CEA, the European Insurance Federation, in Brussels, after representing, for more than eight years, the interests of the Austrian insurance industry at European and international level from her position as a lobbyist at VVO, the Austrian Insurance Federation, in Vienna.

Ms Czech graduated from the University of Graz as a Doctor of Law.

Jean-Rémi Gratadour

Délégué Général, ACSEL | L'Association de l'économie numérique

Jan-Rémi Gratadour is Managing Director of ACSEL (Association of Digital Economy) and member of EMOTA Strategy Committee (European Multichannel & Online Trade Association). Previously, he was E-commerce Director at GeoPost (GeoPost Group regroups the Express subsidiaries of La Poste Group). He was also Secretary General of the Club Sénat association and cofounder of the on-line art bookstore DessinOriginal.com.

Jolanda Girzl

Director, ECC Sweden, Swedish Consumer Agency

Jolanda has over 16 years of experience in Consumer Affairs. Since December 2007, she is the Director of European Consumer Centre (ECC) in Sweden. The ECC-Net offers free consumer advice and counseling to all consumers within the EU, Norway and Iceland who are buying goods or services from a trader based in another EU country, Norway and Iceland. ECC Sweden has led the ECC joint projects on trust marks 2013 and e-commerce 2014.
Prior to her current position, she has worked several years as a local consumer advisor and she built up the local consumer advice centre in the Municipality of Karlstad, who is very successful and now serves five municipalities and have a good national reputation.

She has studied Law at Uppsala University. Jolanda is very interested in promoting safe and responsible use of the Internet and mobile devices. She was awarded for her commitment and involvement in the National Surf Calm campaign in Sweden. Jolanda is a board member of HumanIT at Karlstad University, a multidisciplinary research centre, exploring the impact of information technology on society, in close cooperation with the industry.

Joost Vantomme

Director public affairs, FEBIAC and Regulatory policy expert postal trade and e-commerce

Joost Vantomme is Director Public Affairs with FEBIAC, representing the interests at national, European and global levels of Belgium-based manufacturers, importers and suppliers in all areas of road transport (cars, commercial vehicles, motorized two-wheelers and bicycle).
Joost has 25 years’ experience in Belgian, European and international legal, regulatory and public policy matters in domains such as the internal market and market liberalization, e-commerce and the digital agenda, competition, transport and mobility. Joost is a frequent speaker at conferences and the author of a large number of papers in the regulatory, legal & lobby domain.

His career track includes senior in-house positions such as legal director with Belgacom (telecommunications) and regulatory affairs director with bpost (postal/e-commerce), followed by a period in a large consulting firm (director at Hill+Knowlton Strategies). He was also member of the cabinet of the Belgian minister of Economy. His European outreach was further demonstrated by his chairmanship of the European Union Affairs Committee of PostEurop and his membership of the board of FEDMA (Federation of European direct and interactive marketing). At the international level, Joost took part in the UPU in leading regulatory and policy negotiations for the sector and is civil expert in regulation at the NATO.

Joost holds a Master’s degree in Economic Business Law, a Master’s degree in Law and a Diploma in Teaching Law (Universities of Leuven/Poitiers and Louvain). His mother tongue is Dutch and he is fluent in French, English and German.