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English » ATC - TEAM

ATC - Team

Markus A. GRILLITSCH, Partner & Managing Director
Doctorate in Economics (specialised in innovation, knowledge economy and cooperation), previously worked as Business Development Manager for projects funded by international donors and successfully implemented numerous international consulting projects mainly in the fields of sustainable socio-economic development, regional development, resort planning and tourism development.

Walther CZERNY, Founding Partner & Senior Consultant
MBA; former Director of Sales for US Tour Operators, Director of Marketing for the Austrian National Tourist Office, New York; Managing Director of a hotel chain; Secretary General of the Austrian Hotel Association (ÖHV). As founding partner of ATC he specialises in strategy development and stimulation of innovation processes as well as in culture tourism. He also works as mediator.

Susanne LINTNER, Administration and Finance
20 years of practical work experience in the field of bookkeeping and payroll accounting at chartered accountant firms in different industries. Susanne passed her Accountant's exam successfully in 1996.

Richard CHOPRA, Project Manager
BA in International Studies and Political Science, University of North Carolina, Masters of Arts in International Studies, Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. Richard worked as an associate project manager for the United Nations and at the French Embassy in Vienna before joining ATC in December 2007. His main areas of specialisation are governance, elections and trade capacity building while his regional focus is francophone Africa.

Melanie SUEUR, Project Manager
Masters in European Law and Institutions, University of Salamanca, Masters of Arts in Political Science, Sciences Po Lille. Melanie previously worked in the field of lobbying for private and public sector clients in Paris and Brussels, before joining ATC in February 2008. Her main areas of specialisation are civil society, public administration reform, legal affairs and microfinance, with a regional focus on Latin America and the Caribbean.

Irina JELIAZKOVA, Project Manager
Rotary International Scholar and Goodwill Ambassador, Masters in International Law with International Relations from the University of Kent at Canterbury (Brussels Campus); thesis on Child Soldiers and International Law. Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and French Language and Civilization from Whittier College (California). Prior to joining ATC, Irina was a Senior Expert at the Bulgarian State Agency for Refugees in the area of International Affairs and European Refugee Fund co-management and implementation, as well as a lecturer of Political Science at the New Bulgarian University. She has previously worked at the UNHCR Headquarters in Geneva and UNHCR in Bulgaria. Her main specializations are human rights and humanitarian law, international protection, migration and asylum policies, justice reform and development.

Velyana TOPALOVA , Project Manager
BA in Business Administration and European Studies from the American University in Bulgaria, Master of European Studies from the Center for European Integration Studies (ZEI) in Bonn, Germany. Before joining ATC Consultants’ team in Sofia, Velyana worked for the European Parliament in Brussels, a GTZ project in the field of vocational education and training in Bulgaria and the Bulgarian Construction Chamber’s International Relations department. Her main areas of specialization are trade and private sector development.

Nicu MARZAVAN, Project Manager
As project manager for numerous projects within the European
Commission Delegation in Bucharest, Nicu gained in-depth experience in the field of social & regional development and EU legislation. Prior to joining ATC on a permanent basis, he worked as a freelance specialist in training and communication. Nicu holds a Master’s degree in Communication and Human Resource Management and a BA in Political Science.

Ventislav ARSOV, Project Manager
Has graduated with Bachelor degree in Business Studies and Marketing, from Middlesex University, London, UK and Master degree in International Business and Management from Westminster University, London, UK. Works with ATC Consultants on tourism projects in Bulgaria and Framework Contracts for the EC.

Michael RAFFLING, Senior Consultant

Studies of Law and Business Administration, former CEO of the Tourism Division of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber and of the Austrian Professional Hotel Association, Board Member of the Austrian Tourism Marketing Organisation, Tourism Bank, Copyright User Association, member of National and International Standardisation Organisations for Tourism Related Services, independent Hotel and Tourism Consultant, specialises in re-engeneering processes, NPO-Management, Hotel Classification, International Assistance in Tourism and teaches as Lecturer

Franz KUMPL, Senior Consultant
Doctorate in Philology, Master in Slavic Studies, Certificate in Social Management and Evaluation. Franz worked as lecturer at universities in Tokyo, Moscow, Salzburg and Vienna. He developed and implemented social and cultural projects for NGOs and European consulting companies and worked as a highly successful Team Leader of social tenders in the Russian Federation. Franz is an expert in civil society development, NGO capacity building, social issues and cooperation between governmental and non-governmental organisations.

Heinz PATZAK, Senior Consultant
Doctorate, MBA; between 1967 and 1999 manager of the Austrian National Tourist Offices in New York, Paris and London before working for a Tour Operator specializing in music tours, he is now active as international tourist expert for the development and implementation of innovative marketing concepts and culture tourism projects.

Lutz HEINRICH, Senior Consultant
Degree in Sport Science, managed the Helicopter Skiing resort in Gudauri, Georgia, Mayor and Tourism Development Expert of the city of Oberwiesenthal in Germany (18 Gold Medals at Olympic Games), Owner and Manager of three successful tourism businesses, outstanding experience in Mountain Tourism (winter and summer).

Bernd von DROSTE, UNESCO World Heritage Consultant
Diploma and Masters in Forest Sciences, Doctorate in Ecology; founder and for many years Director of UNESCO World Heritage Centre in Paris; Professor for Master Courses in Heritage Management at various Universities; World Bank Consultant; member of numerous scientific societies.