Meet the team

Stefania Grotti

Head of Research Office
Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy

Passionate and energetic professional involved in the field of academic research with strong competences in the creation of Strategic Path and Management for hiring processes in the Research Office.

More than 18 years of experience as a Research Manager at Politecnico di Milano, most of it as a Manager and Coordinator, with strong leadership and negotiation skills.

Great knowledge of funding and financial management with remarkable experience and ability to negotiate and mediate at any level and stage since 1995. Thanks to a national and international experience on complex projects, she has developed an extensive knowledge in the Organisational HR Field suitable for transnational and diverse Research Contexts (academic and industry).

Proven success in working in Strategic Coordination of Human Resources and funding opportunities (European Programmes), in private, public and academic sectors.

Dr Axel Steuwer

Director of Science Support Services
University of Malta, Malta

Dr Axel Steuwer is the Director for Science Support Services at the University of Malta. After graduating with a PhD in Materials Science from the University of Cambridge, he has been working in the centre of the quadruple helix bridging science, large scale research infrastructure, public authorities & industrial R&D for the last two decades.

An expert in undertaking science at neutron and synchrotron X-ray sources, he helped establish Sweden as the host of the European Spallation Source ERIC. His current role is supporting academics at the University of Malta in all aspects of undertaking excellent research.

Darko Ferčej

Director of E-Institute / E-Zavod
Institute for Comprehensive Development Solutions, Slovenia

Darko Ferčej finished a degree in Policy Analysis and a Masters in Environmental Sciences and is currently employed as director at the E-Institute in Slovenia. He has 14 years of experiences in international project management and 10 years as executive director of E-Institute team.

He is a skilled international project manager, open innovation expert, and is working on multidisciplinary sustainable development issues. He has been coordinator of 5 EU-funded international projects and has participated as partner in more than 30 EU and internationally funded projects, financed from 10 different programmes including Horizon Europe and FP7.

Irene Maxwell

Head of Communications and Privacy
NAVER LABS Europe, France

Irene has a dual role at NAVER LABS Europe where she heads up both communications and privacy. She has spent nearly all her professional life working closely with researchers in the fields now broadly named ‘artificial intelligence’ and has coordinated a number of European Union projects as industry partner. She was a member of the EU Women in Science and Technology (WiST) working group for several years.

An experienced communicator for over 15 years in the field of research and science, Irene more recently became a privacy advocate and in 2016 did a Master’s thesis on the potential impact of the GDPR on the online advertising industry and the need for transparency. Privacy and personal data protection are a strong area of interest. Irene is a certified information privacy professional (CIPM/ CIPP(E)).

Juan Enriquez

Chief Executive Officer
ANALISIS-DSC, Spain

Juan Enriquez, manager of ANALISIS-DSC, leads a highly specialised SME engineering company in the areas of both process and mechanical engineering from Madrid, Spain. He founded the company in 2002 after finishing an MBA at the Instituto de Empresa in Madrid, Spain. Juan also spent a number of years working at VTT Finland, in addition to six years studying in the United States.

Currently, ANALISIS-DSC is involved in a Horizon Europe project with IRIS. Additionally, ANALISIS-DSC is always in search of additional R&D projects where their expertise and know-how can be valued in consortia in their areas of interest.

Roberto Martínez

Head of the European Research Funding Office
Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain

Roberto Martínez is the Head of the European Research Funding Office at the Technical University of Madrid (UPM), he also coordinates the participation of UPM in Horizon Europe and other International Programmes. He is evaluator and reviewer for the R&I Programmes of the European Commission and was the NCP for Horizon Europe from 2014-2016.

He graduated as a Telecommunications Engineer from the School of Telecommunications at UPM, and he has a Masters Degree in Economy and Innovation management and Technology Policy. From the beginning of his professional career, he has been involved in several initiatives related to the cooperation between Europe and Latin America in the Information and Communication Technologies field. His research interests are linked to innovation ecosystems driven by universities, acting as focus for value co-creation and acceleration and commercialisation of technologies.

Sandra Lacey

Research Officer
T.E Laboratories Ltd, Ireland

Sandra Lacey studied Medicine in the National University of Ireland, Galway for 5 years. She has a number of years of experience, working in the areas of Quality Assurance, Regulatory Affairs and Purchasing, as well as working for the government as a Parliamentary Assistant, where she was involved in research activities, as part of her role in developing public policy. Her current role in TE Laboratories Ltd includes submission of R&D proposals, collaboration with industrial partners and RTDs, new product development and project administration.

Servaas Duterloo

Head of Unit Research Funding EU and International Programmes
Delft University of Technology, Netherlands

Servaas Duterloo is the Head of the EU Research Funding & International Programmes Unit of the Directorate of Strategic Development at TU Delft, since 2012. Next to his job he is also the Secretary / Board Member Robo Valley Foundation, the Chief Financial Officer / Board Member Energy Endeavour Foundation. Servaas has studied as a Fulbright Undergraduate Scholar at Allegheny College, PA, (USA) 1983-1984, completed a Master Degree EU Law & International Relations, University of Groningen 1984-1990.

He did a traineeship at the European Commission Task Force PHARE, 1990, and obtained a Master Degree Adv. European Studies, College of Europe Bruges/Natolin 1992-1993. His previous work experience includes Manager of the Netherlands Network of Innovation (Science & Technology) Attaches of the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs, 2004-2012, National Contact Point for EU’s FP6 RTD programme 2001-2004, Consultant with KPMG Consulting 1994-2001 and National Service as an Officer with the Royal Netherlands Navy (Admiralty’s Office) 1991-1992