Instructor profiles

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Charis Anastassiadou

Manager, Human Capital Department
PwC Cyprus

Charis holds a BA in Psychology from Boston University and an MSc in International Employment Relations and Human Resource Management from The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). She is an Investors in People (IIP) Trainee Adviser, SHL Career Counsellor and Cyprus Human Resource Development Authority (CyHRDA) approved trainer.

She specialises in performance management, training, recruitment, people surveys, career counselling and project management. She has been awarded twice the "Excellence in Human Resource Management" award by the Cyprus Human Resource Management Association (CyHRMA). Charis joined PwC Cyprus in 2003.

 

Polina Antoniou

Senior Manager - Advisory Services 
PwC Cyprus

Polina holds post-graduate degrees in Economics and Business Administration as well as the Certified Internal Auditor professional qualification.

She has over 10 years of experience in the Advisory Services of PwC and has been involved in the planning and execution of a large number of engagements/projects in the areas of internal audit, business reorganisation, development of procedures and internal control systems for organisations operating in various sectors of the economy. Additionally, Polina has experience with the provision of advisory services in connection with development and implementation of management systems (ISO9000, ISO14000, OHSAS 18000, HACCP), participation in assignments for the operational upgrading and process re-engineering, and projects relating to the development of procedures manuals of various companies.

Polina is a Board Member of the Institute of Internal Auditors Cyprus, member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, The Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber (ΕΤΕΚ) as well as of the Cyprus Association on Health and Safety.

Polina is also an approved trainer by the Human Resource Development Authority (HRDA) and she has extensive experience with the delivery of training seminars in areas of her specialisation. 

 

Christos Charalambides

Director - Tax Services
PwC Cyprus

Christos is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ACA) and a graduate of The University of California (BA, Economics). After obtaining his professional qualification with PwC Cyprus, during the period 1999 - 2002, he has been a member of the Tax Service line of the firm, where he has gained valuable experience in both international and local taxation.

Christos is currently dealing with the direct tax affairs of an extensive client portfolio of international and local clients, including large multi-national corporations and medium sized corporations and groups. Christos has substantial experience in the financial services, and consumer and industrial products sectors. His experience also covers a wide range of direct tax services, including advisory work on group restructurings, international transactions and tax planning, as well as direct tax compliance work. Christos’ main clients include brokerage and investment houses, funds, dredging companies, oil and gas multinationals, as well as international and local groups in the manufacturing and consumer products sectors.

 

Marios Charalambides

Senior Manager - Assurance Services
PwC Cyprus

Marios began his career at PwC in 2003. He has extensive experience in assurance services department with a number of high profile local and international clients operating primarily in the financial services sector. Marios’ main clients include banking institutions, brokerage and investment firms and funds.

Marios also provides technical support to the Cyprus Accountancy Consultancy Services of PwC, specialising in the area of financial instruments. Also, Marios has been an instructor in a number of external and internal seminars on IFRS.
Marios holds a BSc degree in Business Administration and Finance from the University of Cyprus. He is a also a Chartered Accountant (ACA), member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, as well as a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus.

 

Natalie Chimona

Manager, Corporate Support Services
PwC Cyprus

Natalie Chimona has been working at PwC Cyprus since 1995 as a Manager in the Department of Corporate Support Services.  She holds a Diploma (with Honors) in English and German Philology from the State Institute of Foreign Languages, Georgia.  

She has been training PwC Cyprus personel for the last four years on Corporate Statutory Compliance issues.

 

Antonis Christodoulides

Director, Tax Services
PwC Cyprus

Antonis graduated from the London School of Economics obtaining a First Class BSc in Accounting and Finance. He joined PricewaterhouseCoopers in 1999 as a trainee chartered accountant and in 2002 he became an Associate Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

He specialises in both local and international taxation and his clients include both local and international multinational corporations. Industry specialisation includes financial services, oil and gas, metals and commodities, real estate, retail, construction and electricity.

In 2007, Antonis moved to Moscow where he joined the International Tax Structuring Services of PricewaterhouseCoopers Russia BV for one year, acting as the Cypriot Tax Desk.

Antonis is also a Member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus.

 

Michalis Elpidorou

Corporate Consultant
E&M Advance Ltd, Cyprus

Michalis holds BSc (Honors) in Economics from the University of Salford in 1983. In 1985 he qualified as an accountant by successfully completing the ACCA examinations. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus as from 1987.

In March 1993 he joined the Galatariotis group of companies as a financial controller and served as a board member in various companies. He is currently a corporate consultant specializing in financial management, costing and mergers and acquisitions.

Michalis has been preparing students for ICAEW and ACCA exams since 1990, and delivered courses and seminars both in Cyprus and abroad. He has been involved in the preparation of textbooks and manuals on costing and management accounting in Greek.

 

Savvas Fasouliotis

Director
F&A Grand Auditing and Consulting Limited

Savvas holds a Diploma in Accounting from the Luton College of Higher Education and he is a Fellow member of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants (FCCA).  He was a qualified stockbroker during the period 1999 - 2002.

He has extensive knowledge and  technical experience in the application of the International Financial Reporting Standards.

Savvas has been teaching professional courses (ACCA , ICAEW) since 1990 and also lectured in many professional seminars in Cyprus and Greece.

 

Maria A Georgiou

Senior Manager, Human Capital Department  
PwC Cyprus

Maria has been working at PwC Cyprus since 1995 in the area of human resource consulting.  Her areas of expertise include the design and delivery of tailored learning programmes, training needs analysis, human resource planning, performance management, organisational restructuring, change management, executive recruitment, reward and compensation policies.  

Maria has worked on a number of international assignments including clients from Europe (Greece, Netherlands and Germany) and the Middle East (Qatar, Egypt, Kuwait and Dubai). She is also responsible for the Learning and Education function of PwC Cyprus including the design, planning and delivery of learning and development interventions for all staff members as well as training needs analysis, implementation of global Learning & Education guidelines and talent management.  

Maria is an experienced and enthusiastic trainer in the areas of management development, leadership, personal effectiveness, team building and customer care and she is also a trainer in PwC European programs. She is a qualified practitioner and frequent user of a number of tools used in learning, development and coaching interventions, such as MBTI, DISC, Belbin Team Roles and Thomas Killman Conflict Mode Instrument.

Maria has significant experience as an Assessor/Facilitator in Assessment/Development Centres and as an Executive Coach. She is also a key facilitator for team development and strategy workshops for clients and has developed expertise in the design and delivery of leadership and management development programs.

 

Hara Granath

Senior Manager, Advisory Services  
PwC Cyprus

Hara has been working at PwC since 2000 in the People & Change group.  She has extensive experience in all areas of Human Resource consulting, including performance management, talent management, change management and workforce planning.

Hara leads a Building Capabilities section, which focuses mainly in the design and delivery of management development programs, design and delivery of skill building workshops, Executive Coaching and facilitation of team effectiveness and strategy workshops.  She also supports clients with the design of a training strategy and training needs analysis.

Hara works with clients in Cyprus and abroad (mainly Europe and the Middle East) across all industries.  She is a member of the PwC global trainer pool, participating in large scale international training assignments.

Hara is an experienced and high energy facilitator and trainer.  She is a qualified practitioner and frequent user of a number of self awareness tools used in learning, development and coaching interventions such as the MBTI, DISC, Belbin Team Roles and Thomas Killman Conflict Mode Instrument.

Hara has significant experience as an Executive Coach and is an accredited and experienced Assessor/Facilitator in Assessment and Development Centres.  

Hara is an approved trainer by the Cyprus Human Resource Development Authority and a member of the Cyprus Human Resource Management Association.

 

George Kazamias

Partner, Assurance Services  
PwC Cyprus

George started his career with PwC in 1999. He is a member of PwC Cyprus Accounting Consulting Services, specialising in International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) related issues on financial instruments.

George has been an instructor on a number of seminars on IFRSs. He has extensive assurance experience with a number of high profile clients in the financial services sector, mainly in the banking, investment management and real estate industries.

George holds an BSc (Honors) in Accounting and Finance from the University of Warwick. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus. George is also a member of the Accounting Standards Committee of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus for the past seven years.

 

Anna Loizou

Director - Assurance Services  
PwC Cyprus

Anna started her career with PwC in 1999. She is a member of PwC’s Global Accounting Consulting Services (ACS) community, specialising in International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) related issues on business combinations and a member of the Cyprus ACS services.

She has been an instructor on a number of seminars on IFRSs. Anna has extensive assurance experience with a number of high profile clients in the financial services sector, mainly in the banking and investment management industries.

Anna holds an MA (Honors) in Economics from King’s College, University of Cambridge and she is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

 

Marilena Shakalli Maroudia

Tutor of The Academy
PwC Cyprus


Marilena holds a BSc (Hons) in Management Sciences from the London School of Economics (LSE).

She qualified as a Chartered Accountant in London in 2002, and became a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).  Marilena was very enthusiastic about teaching, so once qualified, she joined Financial Training Company (Kaplan Inc) in London where she was part of the Financial Accounting/Reporting lecturing team for a number of examination bodies (eg ACCA, CIMA). 

In 2004 she returned to Cyprus and she became a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus (ICPAC). She joined Cyprus College (School of Professional Studies) as a tutor, teaching mainly ICAEW courses.  This position was held until September 2010 when Marilena joined PwC as a tutor of the Academy.  She is involved in teaching trainee accountants for their professional exams, as well as offering seminars.  She specialises in Financial Accounting and Financial Reporting.

 

Nicolas Nicolaou

Senior Manager, Advisory Services
PwC Cyprus

Nicolas C. Nicolaou holds a Bachelor on Computer Science & Electronic Engineering from University of Hull in the United Kingdom.  He is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).

From 1997 to 2007 he was Senior Manager of the Global Compliance and Corporate & Secretarial Services department of HLB Afxentiou and Partners. From 2007 onwards he has been working at PwC Cyprus as Senior Manager of the Business Recovery Services team in Financial Advisory.

 

Chrysilios Pelekanos

Partner - Tax Services (VAT)
PwC Cyprus

Having obtained his professional qualification with Coopers and Lybrand between 1993 to 1996, Chrysilios transferred to the Tax department of PwC where he gained valuable tax experience in International and Local Tax.  He then transferred to the Indirect Tax department of the firm where he became a Partner and which he currently leads.

He has a wide experience in indirect taxes with particular specialisation on VAT as well as in international transaction structuring, especially with transactions concerning investments into Russia and other former Soviet Union republics.  Other jurisdictions with which he has significant transaction structuring experience include Canada and India.  His clients include large multi-national corporations in various sectors of the economy such as Consumer Products, Oil and Gas, and Construction industry.

Chrysilios is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and is also a member of the VAT committee of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Cyprus which he served as President for several years.
 

 

Costas Seraphim

Head of The Academy
PwC Cyprus

Costas holds a BA (Honours) in Economics from the University of Essex. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1992. He is a member of ICPAC since 1993. Upon his return from England, he joined Deloitte & Touche in Nicosia and joined Intercollege in 1995 as a senior officer and tutor for the ICAEW courses.

In July 1998 he joined Cyprus College as a director of the School of Professional Studies and Head of the ICAEW Courses, a position he held since September 2009. As from September 2009, Costas joined PwC as the Head of PwC Academy Cyprus.

Costas has taught courses for ICAEW and ACCA exams since 1994, as well as open seminars on Financial Reporting and Auditing related subjects. He delivered courses in many parts of the world such as Greece, Malta, Poland and Romania. He has also been involved in the preparation of textbooks in IFRSs and ISAs in Greek.

Costas has served as a member of the Board of ICPAC for two consecutive terms and he was the President of the Accounting and Auditing Standards Committee of ICPAC for two years. He is currently a member of the Ethics Committee.  

 

Nicos Stavrou

Senior Manager, Assurance Services
PwC Cyprus

Nicos began his career at PwC in 2000. He has extensive assurance experience with a number of high profile local and international clients operating primarily in the financial services sector. Nicos also provides technical support to the Cyprus Accountancy Consultancy Services of PwC, specialising in the area of financial instruments.

Nicos has been an instructor in a number of external and internal seminars on IFRS. He also participates regularly in local and international conferences of PwC in relation to IFRS and auditing standards as well as developments in the insurance industry, one of his areas of specialization.

Nicos holds a BSc in Economics from the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE) and an MPhil in Finance from Cambridge University. He is a also a Chartered Accountant (ACA), member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, as well as a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus.

 

Michael Tsikouris

Manager, Advocate
S. A. Evangelou & Co LLC, Cyprus

Michael has obtained an LL.B (Hons) from the University of Bristol, UK and an LL.M (Master of Corporate and Commercial Law) from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) – University of London.

Michael is qualified and registered as an Advocate of the Supreme Court of Cyprus. He worked as an in-house counsel at PwC Cyprus and since 2008 he is an Advocate / Manager at S.A. Evangelou LLC, which is a full member firm of PwC International.

Michael has also been a part-time lecturer of Business Law in European University (Cyprus) during 2008-2010.

 

Stelios Violaris

Partner - Tax Services
PwC Cyprus

Stelios studied Accounting and Finance at the University of South Bank in London. In 1993 he qualified as an accountant by successfully completing the ACCA professional examinations. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and a member of the Cyprus Institute of Public Accountants of which he has also served as a member of the taxation committee for two consecutive years.

Stelios handles the tax affairs of  a number of big, multinational and local client groups and private equity funds, who are mostly active in the fields of real estate and financial services/investments. He dedicates significant time in assisting clients in their initial structurings/set-ups, group reorganizations and restructurings, mergers and acquisitions as well as due diligence projects.