Manager of the Year 2017, Odisseas Athanasiou

Odisseas Athanasiou, Chief Executive Officer of LAMDA Development SA, was awarded the Manager of the Year 2017 distinction by the Hellenic Management Association (EEDE) at the 16th Awards Ceremony held today, Tuesday 22 May 2018, in the peristyle of the Zappeion.
Welcoming the participants, the Chairman of the BoD of EEDE, Konstantinos Lamprinopoulos, referred to two basic values, namely Excellence and Volunteerism. He mentioned some of the great national benefactors, including Zappas, Tositsas and Arsakis, as well as contemporary ones such as Onassis and Niarchos, who have left the Greeks a legacy of great works and infrastructures. He said that although these have been put to good use, their longevity is threatened by the mentality that characterizes Greeks as a nation. He also spoke of the power of volunteerism that grew stronger during the Greek crisis. He concluded by saying that at EEDE, which is primarily a voluntary organization, we believe in Volunteerism and Excellence and we will continue working in these two directions.

The Manager of the Year 2017 Awards Ceremony was addressed by the Vice President of New Democracy and MP in the Athens B constituency, Kostis Hatzidakis.
This year's winner of the award has held the position of Chief Executive Officer of LAMDA Development for ten years. Upon receiving the award, Mr. Athanasiou thanked EEDE for this recognition. He thanked the employees at LAMDA Development whom he described as the heart and soul of the company. He pointed out that LAMDA Development is where it is today thanks to the unconditional support from the Latsis Group and emphasized the company’s commitment to the values of extroversion, reliability and innovation, which are underlying principles of its corporate philosophy.

Over the last four years of his ten-year position as Chief Executive Officer of LAMDA Development, Mr. Athanasiou has, despite the adverse economic circumstances, managed to achieve record profitability and establish the company as market leader. He mentioned that being able to truly listen to the needs of all parties in all types of collaborations, and to build a relationship of trust in every case, are key elements to success.
Mr. Athanasiou also emphasized the importance of international partnerships. By virtue of the company's outward-looking strategy, international partnerships have been secured with highly prestigious companies including the Blackstone Group, Värde Partners, Dogus Group, HSBC, Fosun and Eagle Hills. It was this commitment that paved the way for LAMDA Development to proceed with the largest privately-funded investment in Greece, - one of the largest worldwide - the redevelopment of the former Hellinikon airport.

The awards ceremony was attended by over 300 guests, members of EEDE, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and representatives of the political world.
Sponsors of the Manager of the Year 2017 Awards Ceremony were: Edenred, EFG Eurobank, ManpowerGroup Greece, Papastratos and Pharmathen. Supporters: Kandarakis and Xerox. Media Sponsors: Adbusiness, Business News Magazine, CSR Review, RetailBusiness, Naftemporiki and Manager. Web Communication Sponsors: Advertising.gr, BusinessNews.gr, csrnews.gr, European Business Review and naftemporiki.gr.
In addition to his tenure at LAMDA Development, Odisseas Athanasiou has many years of experience in senior management positions both in Greece and abroad. In his 9-year career in the US he worked for Ernst & Young and Emerson Electric. He has held the positions of CFO of Diageo Hellas, where he was responsible for the Greece-Turkey hub, CFO Western Europe for Βarilla, based in Paris, and CFO Greece at the Titan Cement company. He also served as a member of the BoD of the aforementioned companies. He holds a degree in Economics and Political Sciences from the University of Athens and an MBA with honors from the University of Texas in Austin.

He actively participates in conferences, speeches, and debates regarding the need to restructure the economy and boost entrepreneurship, regarding the investment environment in Greece, and Real Estate. Furthermore, he has written many articles, (Economist etc) in which he analyzes the developments and investment prospects for Greece and the global economy.
He is a member of the General Council of SEV (Hellenic Federation of Enterprises), member of the Board of Directors of SELPE (Hellenic Retail Business Association) and of the Alliance for Greece (founding member) and member of the committee of TEDx Academy Greece.