ACG Distinguished Speakers Series 2025

Organized by
Office of Public Affairs, The American College of Greece

In collaboration with
Department of Information Technology, Cybersecurity & Computer Sciences

Supported by
Information Technology Academic Society and Cybersecurity Student Club

About the event:

The first ACG Distinguished Speakers Series of 2025 proudly features Kostas Georgakopoulos, Global Chief Technology and Chief Information Security Officer of Mondelēz International, in an engaging panel discussion with Dr. Konstantinos Vavousis and two ΙΤ Deree students, Eva Petrovska (Information Technology Major – Applied and Computational Mathematics Minor, Sophomore) and Sava Boga (Information Technology Major, Sophomore). With over 25 years of expertise in technology and cybersecurity, CTO Kostas Georgakopoulos has spearheaded digital transformations for companies and has guided organizations through some of the most intricate cybersecurity challenges while ensuring that technology teams align with business objectives. This event promises to provide invaluable insights into the connections between cybersecurity, AI, and business strategy.

Launched in January 2024, the ACG Distinguished Speakers Series (DSS) features top policy makers, academics, field experts, diplomats, business executives and community leaders coming from the US. Speakers share their professional trajectories and expertise on topical issues of their choice, and engage in an interactive discussion with the help of a moderator, with Deree students and the broader ACG community (alumni, faculty, staff, as well as friends and partners of the institution). These events take place twice a year, they can also be open to a broader public and are hosted at the main ACG campus in Aghia Paraskevi, Athens. For the kickoff year’s first two events, ACG was privileged to host US Congressman John Sarbanes and Nobel Prize winner & Columbia professor Joseph Stiglitz.

The event is open to the public. Parking upon availability.

Speakers

CTO & CISO Kostas Georgakopoulos Global Chief Technology & Information Security Officer of Mondelēz International

Mr. Georgakopoulos is a Technology and Cybersecurity Transformational Executive with more than 25 years of leadership experience developing digital and cyber capabilities to improve organizational teams, processes, products, services and software. He has extensive knowledge and expertise in optimizing operational costs, process efficiencies and developing internal digital and technology teams to better serve business goals and strategies. He is currently serving as the Global Chief Technology and Chief Information Security Officer of Mondelez International. He is an industry recognized expert in the field of Technology and Cybersecurity. He has led Information Technology and Security programs, advised C-Level executives, Board of Directors, security industry organizations, as well as regulators on matters involving cybersecurity, incident response and security best practices. Mr. Georgakopoulos has supported organizations in some of the most complex cybersecurity breaches and coordinated incident response efforts with multiple law enforcement agencies and regulators. As the Mondelez CTO & CISO he is leading the digital transformation efforts for Mondelez International and is instrumental in the Cloud strategy powering the corporations Vision 2030 with AWS and SAP S4 RISE with enhanced security, agility, cost efficiencies and reliability of operations. Mr. Georgakopoulos has held global Technology and CISO positions for leading financial services organizations including Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Bank of China, NASDAQ, UBS, and Procter & Gamble, the largest consumer manufacturing company in the world. Prior to joining Mondelez International, Mr. Georgakopoulos served as the Global Chief Information Security Officer of Procter & Gamble, Americas CISO and Global Head of Security Operations for UBS and as the Global CISO for NASDAQ where he led the organization through the largest breach of the period and partnered with multiple law enforcements agencies, regulators and successfully mitigated a national security threat.

Dr. Konstantinos Vavousis Associate Professor and the Department Chair at the Department of Information Technologies, Cybersecurity and Computer Science

Konstantinos Vavousis is Associate Professor and the Department Chair at the Department of Information Technologies, Cybersecurity and Computer Science, at The American College of Greece. He is an IT Security professional with over 17 years of in-depth technical knowledge and experience. He holds a PhD from the University of Piraeus, researching in the field of IT Security with a focus on Network and Infrastructure Security. His current research interests include Artificial Intelligence in the context of Cybersecurity, as well as Machine Learning, Wireless Communication Networks, Social Engineering, and the Regulatory Compliance and Legal Aspects of Cybersecurity. He is the initiator of Ethihak - the innovative ethical hacking contest. Dr. Vavousis is a certified Ethical Hacker, and an ISO 27001 Lead Auditor.

Organized by

Office of Public Affairs, The American College of Greece