The Competence Center on Technology Transfer is part of the unit on Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer at the DG JRC of the European Commission.

To contact members of our team please send an e-mail to: 

EC-CC-TT@ec.europa.eu

Giancarlo CARATTI

HEAD OF UNIT

Portfolio: Head of Unit on Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer at the Directorate General Joint Research Centre (DG JRC), which contains the Competence Centre on Technology Transfer

Experience: In his previous assignments, Mr Caratti managed other Commission departments, namely: “Institutional and International Relations”, “Enlargement” and “Policy Support Strategy”. Mr Caratti started his career in the European Commission in 1986. In 2015, he was Deputy Commissioner General for the EU participation in the World Expo 2015. He founded the Competence Centre on Technology Transfer in 2010.

Educational background: Mechanical Engineering, with a specialisation in energy. Mr. Caratti has over 60 publications in international conferences, journals, etc. and is editor of various technical books.

Alessandro FAZIO

Head of the joint research centre's Competence centre on technology transfer

Portfolio: Head of the Joint Research Centre's Competence Centre on Technology Transfer.

Experience: Alessandro Fazio started his career in investment banking with Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch. Between 2004 and 2011 Alessandro spent a number of years working in consulting and the early stage investment sector and was exposed to a wide variety of technologies and industries.

Alessandro has a keen interest in technology transfer and in how to support the growth and expansion of innovation eco-systems using a holistic approach covering capacity building, financing and infrastructure investment.

Educational background: BSc International Relations (LSE) and MSc in State, Society and Development (SOAS)

Elena ANDONOVA

Policy Officer

Portfolio:

• Multi-disciplinary expert, engaged in innovation management and technology commercialization.
• Cohesion, enlargement and international cooperation policies – expertise in supporting the development of innovation ecosystems with focus on financial instruments for innovation and technology transfer.
• Conceptualization of Proof of Concept schemes and technology transfer funds.
• Part of the Programme Advisory Group of the Enterprise Development and Innovation Facility for the Western Balkans.

Experience: Elena worked as a consultant at Oxford University Innovation building capacities in technology transfer in over 40 economies worldwide. She also worked as capital markets analyst for Lehman Brothers in London.

Educational background: MBA from Said Business School in Oxford

Recent projects:

• Reshaping the functional and operational capacity of Sofia Tech Park
• Proof of Concept support for the Western Balkans
• Capacity building in technology transfer for the Western Balkans, EU4Tech
• Publication: Proof of Concept in South-Eastern Europe
• Publication: Startup Innovation Ecosystems in Southern Europe
• Flagship Report Contribution. Publication: Blockchain Now and Tomorrow.

Eva BALTAR

Policy analyst

Portfolio:

• Analysis of innovation ecosystems in close cooperation with national stakeholders, managing authorities, and policy makers within the European Commission and EU Delegations
• Supporting the development of international cooperation and innovation programmes, with a special focus on the EU’s neighbourhood countries
• Coordination of implementation programmes to develop technology transfer ecosystems, including capacity building, financial instruments and investment readiness

Experience: Eva has sixteen years of international experience in Technology Transfer in academia, managing relationships and working in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams. Previously she worked as a senior consultant at Oxford University Innovation (OUI), the technology transfer company of the University of Oxford. At OUI she managed and delivered technology transfer consultancy and training programmes for government agencies, universities, research organisations and private foundations worldwide.

At the University of Santiago de Compostela she worked as a Technology Transfer Manager and as an Investment Analyst at a venture capital society specialised in technology-based spin-offs. She later joined the Deputy Vice Presidency of Knowledge Transfer at CSIC, the largest public research institution in Spain. At CSIC she managed the commercialisation of technologies through the creation of spin-offs. Eva also has experience in the private sector where she worked as a Deputy Finance Director.

Educational background: MPhil in Applied Economics & BA in Business Administration from the University of Santiago de Compostela.

Recent projects:

• Technology Transfer Study of EU Neighbourhood Countries
• Capacity building in technology transfer for the Western Balkans, EU4Tech
• Publication: Investor Readiness in the Western Balkans: challenges, opportunities and practical experiences
• Publication: Startup Innovation Ecostystems in Southern Europe  

Sergio GRANDE

Innovation and technology transfer officer

Portfolio:

• Responsible for the European TTO Circle, an initiative that aims at enhancing collaboration on knowledge transfer among TTOs (Technology Transfer Offices) of major European public research organisations.
• Support of the development of  entrepreneurship training programs.
• Management of the patent portfolio of the European Commission – including involvement in the management of the IPR for the global navigation satellite system Galileo.

Experience: Sergio has more than 20 years of experience in Innovation and promotion of new Technology as a result of his past employment as a tech transfer officer  at the Lecce University and at the ENEA, The Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development. 

Educational background: BA Economics, University of Lecce; MA Innovation and Technology Tansfer, PASTIS CNRSM, Brindisi

Recent projects:

• Publication: IPR, Technology Transfer & Open Science: Challenges and Opportunities
• Publication: Technology Transfer in Nanotechnology
• Publication: Approaches to and methods for evaluating new technologies in Technology Transfer Offices: How long is a piece of string?

Mattias DINNETZ

Programme manager

Portfolio:

• Manager of the EC-JRC’s Proof of Concept Programme
• Research agenda of the CC TT
• Managing studies with external experts
• Patent Portfolio Management
• EC-JRC responsible for collaboration with the Association of European Science and Technology Transfer Professionals (ASTP)

Experience: Mattias is an innovation management professional with a strong focus on creating value in the interface between public research and private enterprise across a number of technological fields. He previously worked at the Technical University of Denmark, and his experience entails running PoC programmes, IP management and licensing, public-private sector R&D liaison, as well as negotiating terms and conditions for equity-based risk capital. Mattias also undertakes social, economic, and legal research with the aim of improving policy for technology transfer.

Educational background: MSc, LLM, and PhD from the University of London

Recent projects:

• Knowledge transfer metrics – towards a European-wide set of harmonized indicators
• Corporate venture capital – evaluation of the state of the art
• Publication: IP Exchange and Finance

Stoyan KAYMAKTCHIYSKI

Project officer

Portfolio:

• Design and operation of innovation ecosystems with a focus on Science and Technology Parks (STPs) and Innovation Districts facilitating technology transfer and knowledge diffusion (in the broader sense)
• Advisory and technical support to the services of the European Commission, to national and regional authorities as well as to innovation managers and practitioners in the Member States.
• Organisation of regional conferences related to technology transfer in South-East Europe

Experience: Stoyan worked at the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group in Luxembourg (2016) and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF, 2015-2016) as a legal trainee. Further back in time, he worked for a young SME company in the private sector in Bulgaria (2013-2015) managing the full project cycle (initiation and promotion, negotiation and organisation, monitoring and reporting) of EU co-funded educational and qualification programmes serving individuals but also large corporate clients in the country.

Educational background: Stoyan holds a Master of Laws LL.M. in International Trade and Investment Law from the University of Amsterdam and a LL.B. in Comparative and European Law from Maastricht University.   

Recent projects:

• Reshaping the functional and operational capacity of Sofia Tech Park
• Public private partnerships for science and technology parks and innovation districts
• Publication: Proof of Concept in South-Eastern Europe

Sheron SHAMUILIA

Policy officer

Portfolio: Innovation Ecosystems & Capacity Building

Experience: Sheron joined KU Leuven Research and Development, the technology transfer office of KU Leuven, in 2012 where she was responsible for contract research, patenting, licensing, and spin-off creation. After that, she was active as independent consultant where she focused on R&D tax and grants incentives, venture creation and investment, and new partnership scouting and building.

Educational background: Sheron holds a PhD in semiconductor physics and a postgraduate in corporate finance (KU Leuven), in addition to being a qualified European Patent Attorney and Certified Licensing Professional.

Recent projects:

• Strategic evaluation of the TIP-UPJŠ, the University of Pavel Jozef Šafárik’s Technology and Innovation Park in Košice, Slovakia

Kaia KERT

Programme Assistant

Portfolio: JRC Living Labs

Experience:

Between 2015 and 2018, Kaia worked in the consulting industry, as a research analyst for international mobility solutions in the UK and as an international project consultant in Estonia. Before joining the JRC, she completed a traineeship at the Directorate-General Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs.

Educational background: Kaia has an MA in International Political Economy from the University of Warwick and a BA in International Relations from Queen Mary University of London.

Recent projects:

• TTO Circle Workshop Report ‘Connecting to the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem’

Margot MOSLINGER

Programme Assistant

Experience: Margot joined the CC TT in 2019 as a Blue Book Trainee. Before she was working on a tech transfer project for circular economy that transferred technology from the European Space Agency to a brewery in the Netherlands. She followed start-up and entrepreneurship trainings for commercializing technical solutions to climate change.

Educational background: MSc Industrial Ecology, TU Delft, NL; MA International Relations and European-Asian Studies, TalTech; EIT Climate-KIC Master Label

Recent projects:

• TTO Circle Workshop Report ‘Connecting to the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem’

Alessandro PIETROMARTIRE

Programme officer and event coordinator

Vanessa MANENO MUKANDANGA

ASSISTANT

An SPINOY

ASSISTANT TO THE HEAD OF UNIT

Joelle WEINTRAUB

SECRETARIAT