Borko Handjiski has more than twenty years of experience in advising public sector organisations on strategy, public policy, and organisational development. He spent half of his career with the World Bank, working with governments in Europe, Asia, and Africa, followed by six years with McKinsey & Company, serving public sector clients in the Middle East and globally. Between 2021 and 2024 he was with the Abu Dhabi government, and in 2024 he joined Oliver Wyman as a Partner in its UAE office.

Throughout his career he has worked with more than hundred senior government executives across dozens of countries, including prime ministers, ministers, and heads of government agencies. Borko has coauthored several World Bank publications and has published articles on public sector topics.

Borko is from North Macedonia, but since 2007 has lived in four countries on three continents. His current family home, with his spouse and three children, is in the UAE.

Arben is a successful entrepreneur from North Macedonia, known for building businesses that have grown well beyond the region. After earning a Business Administration degree from the State University of New York, he began his career in Europe’s conferences and training sector. In 2007, he moved to the UAE, bringing his expertise to the Middle East’s fast-growing market. In 2010, he co-founded LEORON, now one of the leading corporate training and EdTech companies in the Middle East, with operations across Europe, Africa, and Central Asia. Under his leadership, the company has delivered major HR and performance improvement projects for both government and private sector clients. Arben continues to champion innovation and proudly represents North Macedonia on the global business stage.

Professor Nikica Mojsoska-Blazevski is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Macedonia2025. Nikica's prior experience was in academia, where she served two terms as Dean of the Business School at University American College-Skopje, as well as in the public administration where she worked as a Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Republic of Macedonia.

Nikica has an extensive experience of over 15 years in research, consultancy and advisory in economic policies, social systems and policy, labour markets, and education in Macedonia, as well as the Western Balkan region. She has been working with major international economic organisations and institutions, such as the World Bank, ILO, RCC, UNDP, UN Women and the European Commission. Mojsoska-Blazevski is author of many journal articles and several book chapters, mainly in the area of social policy, labour markets, education, gender issues, youth, etc.

Nikica has served as an advisor to the government institutions in Macedonia and the Western Balkan region on economic, employment and social policy issues. Nikica is a member of several professional organizations in Macedonia, as well as of well-renowned international scientific organizations.

Partner at Eleven heading the Healthcare investment team. One of the pioneers of private equity in SEE, Valeri brings extensive investment expertise from his roles at Global Finance, Bancroft Private Equity, and Axxess Capital. His experience spans more than 30 company boards across numerous industries. Valeri's background combines investment expertise with valuable managerial experience from his position as CEO of Orgachim and executive roles at Royal Dutch Shell.

Andrew Wrobel is a reinvention strategist working at the intersection of systems, strategy, and future relevance. As Chief Reinvention Officer at Reinvantage, he helps governments, corporates, and start-ups rethink the operational architecture beneath performance—how decisions are structured, value is captured, incentives align, and resilience is embedded.

His work centres on systemic reinvention: redesigning the logic of how organisations function, not just what they plan, so they remain relevant as context shifts. Andrew advises leaders across Europe and emerging markets, delivers keynote talks on reinvention, and is the author of Capture What You Create, a book on value capture in an age of constant change.

Jordan Bitove is the CEO and Chairman of NordStar Capital, Publisher of the Toronto Star and Owner of Torstar Corporation. Torstar's news organizations deliver trusted reporting and high-quality journalism.

More than 11 million Canadians turn to Torstar for their news every month. Torstar's news organizations include the Toronto Star and over 60 local news brands across Ontario. Jordan's distinguished career at the forefront of Canadian business includes ownership of Canada's leading media brands, and significant investment in businesses related to technology, online gaming, real estate, hospitality, natural resources, and distribution.

As a leader in Canada's sports industry, Jordan helped launch the Toronto Raptors basketball team, the first NBA franchise awarded outside the United States, and he was part of the ownership consortium that built the SkyDome (now Rogers Centre). Jordan was a member of the Board of Trustees for SickKids Foundation from 2012 to 2025. He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Toronto International Film Festival, the Board of Governors of Western University, and the Canadian Advisory Board for Right to Play.

In 2012, he was a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal for his philanthropic work. In November 2023, Jordan was awarded the Order of Ontario, the province's highest civilian honour for extraordinary contributions. He received the King Charles III Coronation Medal in July 2025 for meritorious public service. Jordan is a graduate of Western University and holds the position of Honorary Consul to the Republic of North Macedonia.

Elizabeth Naumovski is a multi award-winning financial literacy & female empowerment advocate, television host, moderator, emcee, speaker and is Board certified. Elizabeth is the recipient of the 2025 Wealth Professional Pier 4 Award for Female Trailblazer of the Year. In 2022, she received the noteworthy Queen's Platinum Jubilee award for her contribution to community. Elizabeth is honoured to be the 2021 & 2019 inaugural recipient of the Wealth Professional IFSE Institute Award for Financial Literacy Champion.

Elizabeth is proud to be a 2020 Alumni of Distinction Award winner for Creative Arts & Design. Since winning the award, she created the Elizabeth Naumovski Alumni of Distinction Bursary, for a single mother (or woman) enrolled in any STEM course at Mohawk College. She is Vice President Marketing at Caldwell Securities, since 1997, and is responsible for marketing, corporate communications & public relations. She has her Chartered Marketer Designation. Since 2023, she is the host of EMPOWERED. with Elizabeth Naumovski, a weekly Canadian national television show on the News Forum Network, aimed at empowering women and future female Canadian leaders. Empowered airs every Wednesday & Friday at 7:30pm EDT.

She decided to host only female guests to give women a voice. To watch episodes of EMPOWERED. click here: https://thenewsforum.ca/series/empowered/ or on her YouTube channel. She is on the Advisory Council of the United Macedonian Diaspora ("UMD"). She is a past Board member of the Macedonian Film Festival. She was a member of the Canadian Capital Markets Association's (CCMA) T+1 Communications & Education Committee, on the Advisory Committee of Canadian Blood Services Partners Council and on the Communications Committee of the IIAC. She is Past Director of the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame & was on the Advisory Board of XTRX Solutions prior to their IPO.

Elizabeth has climbed the active volcano Stromboli, hiked through the Dolomites in Italy, snorkeled thru Silfra Fissure & hiked & climbed a glacier in Iceland. She also completed the Tough Mudder Half. She mentors young women & donates blood to Canadian Blood Services every 84 days. She has donated over 85 times. She also volunteers and feeds Toronto's homeless through the Out of the Cold program. Caldwell Securities Ltd. is regulated by Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization & a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

Ron Thomas is a globally recognized executive advisor and leadership strategist with more than two decades of experience architecting enterprise-level people, leadership, and workforce transformations across the Middle East, Africa, North America, and Asia. Known for pioneering the Workforce Architect approach, Ron works at the intersection of enterprise strategy, organizational design, leadership capability, and future-ready workforce systems.

His advisory work supports CEOs, Boards, and CHROs in translating strategy into execution through modern workforce architecture, leadership pipelines, governance models, and operating structures aligned to growth, productivity, risk, and resilience. Ron has held senior executive and board-level roles, including CHRO at Al Raha Group (Riyadh), VP HR & Board Director at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (New York), and CEO of Great Place to Work® MENA, advising organizations through large-scale transformation, culture integration, and leadership renewal.

A respected global thought leader, Ron has been consistently recognized among the world's most influential HR and leadership voices, including Top 5 HR Thinkers in the Middle East (CIPD), Asia's 50 Most Talented Global HR Leaders, Global 200 Inspirational Leaders, and Power 200: Biggest Voices in Leadership. In 2025, he was named one of the Top 10 Inspiring HR Leaders to Watch, nominated for the Global Image Awards under UAE Royal Patronage, and appointed Jury Member for the 17th HRM Summit Awards & Expo, the region's most respected HR platform. In December 2025, Ron received the Distinguished Service Award for Advancing HR Excellence in Africa, recognizing over a decade of contributions as a judge, assessor, and thought leader, shaping professional standards and leadership capabilities across the continent.

Ron is deeply engaged in academic leadership and governance. He serves as Executive Faculty at Howard University's Global HR Leadership Institute and as Faculty at the American University in the Emirates, and he sits on multiple academic advisory boards, including the MBA Advisory Board and the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) Advisory Board at The American University in the Emirates. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the Stirling Centre for Strategic Learning & Innovation in the UK, contributing to the design of future-focused leadership, learning, and innovation agendas.

In parallel, Ron is a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council and the McKinsey Quarterly Executive Panel, contributing practitioner insight to global executive discourse. Ron is the creator of several globally deployed leadership and workforce frameworks, including The Symphonic C-Suite®, the Workforce Architect Method™, the Workforce Architect: Executive Leadership Program, and the Future Leaders Program. He has delivered over 100 global keynotes in 30+ countries, influencing workforce systems and leadership models that impact more than 250,000 people worldwide.

Vojdan Karapetkovski is the CEO of Kara5®, a next-gen digital agency headquartered in New York and Skopje, renowned for accelerating digital evolution across Switzerland, EU, US and worldwide for over a decade. With a strong commitment to delivering first-class digital solutions, Kara5® has driven successful transformations and sustainable growth for clients across various industries, including BMW, MINI, CVA, SpiroChem, Emerald, Abhati, Modirum, Connect and more.

Under his leadership, Kara5® has cemented its position as a digital pioneer in Macedonia, ranking among the top 2% of the most successful companies in the country for five consecutive years. The agency is also a long-standing Google Partner, recognized for its expertise in high-impact digital advertising. As a regular keynote speaker at regional conferences, he shares deep insights into data and strategy, contributing to the advancement of digital knowledge and innovation across the industry. His visionary leadership and proven track record earned him the recognition as 'Man of the Year' in 2021 in the category of Manager of the Year under 40 and a place in the '40 under 40' in Europe in 2024.

Today, Vojdan continues to shape the future of digital advertising through his work with global tech companies and brands, alongside his active role as Chief Digital Officer (CDO) at CEV – the European Volleyball Confederation in Luxembourg.

Tanja M. Dimitrievska is a senior banking executive and board member with more than 20 years of international experience in audit, risk, and governance. As Global Audit Director at Barclays Bank in the UK, she leads multi-regional teams across APAC, EMEA, and the US, driving large-scale transformation and elevating global governance standards.

A recognised leader in the governance community, Tanja is a founding Board Member of the Institute of Internal Auditors in North Macedonia and serves as Country Lead for Women on Board Adria. Through her work, she champions diversity, influence, and stronger professional and business ties between North Macedonia and the UK.

She is known for her strategic insight, cross-border leadership, and commitment to building resilient, well-governed organisations.

Gavin Nicholas Ryan is a private equity and venture capital expert. He is also the author of the 2024 Private Equity Market Study of the Southeast Europe Albania Region.

His firm Wider Europe Capital Management focuses on private equity and SME finance in emerging markets, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Gavin has managed various funds, including a €2.5bn green energy fund, a $200 million private equity growth fund for Soros Investment Management and a $30 million Advent International venture fund.

From 2015 he has acted as an expert consultant and trainer and has provided advisory services to LPs and GPs in emerging markets, enhancing their investment strategies and capacity building efforts. He has also authored and co-authored around 13 major market studies in the field.

Gavin started his career in troubled company administration with Price Waterhouse Milan and worked in investment banking for 10 years in London with Nomura International and then HSBC Investment Bank, where he was involved in M&A, equity capital markets and private equity.

Gavin is also involved in philanthropy through a not-for-profit he founded, Nehemiah Impact Ventures, dedicated to promoting financial literacy among high school students.

Gavin is Italo-English and grew up in Lombardy, Italy. He has a Masters in Engineering from Cambridge University and an MBA from McGill University. He speaks fluent English, French and Italian; and good German, Serbo-Croatian and Romanian.

Muhannad is the Founding Partner of Olive Rock Partners, one of the first independent Private Equity managers in the GCC, backed by leading regional and international institutional investors. Olive Rock Partners focuses on strategic investment opportunities in the GCC, with a primary focus on Saudi Arabia and the UAE. He sits on several corporate and advisory boards regionally.

Prior to this, Muhannad was the Senior Managing Director and IC member at Gulf Capital in Abu Dhabi (14 years total), focusing on Private Equity investments in the GCC and Egypt (c. USD 1.5 billion of Private Equity funds).

Before moving to the UAE, Muhannad was a Senior Principal at Investcorp and Senior Investment Advisor at Morgan Stanley in London.

Muhannad graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), with a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering and concentrations in creative writing & economics.

Darijo joined GKCF in 2013 and is currently a Partner based in Zagreb. He has extensive corporate finance experience gained through more than 100 engagements for local and international clients, involving sell-side and buy-side M&A, fundraising, valuation, due diligence and financial restructuring. Clients with whom Darijo has actively worked with include Marlin Equity Partners, Infinum, Pentalog, Emma Capital Group, Transcom, AON, and MET Holding. Before joining GKCF he has worked for Slovakia based Budamar Logistics.

John I. Bitove has a distinguished record of accomplishment in the corporate, sports and community endeavours. He is the sole shareholder of Obelysk, which has major investments in the wireless, satellite radio, real estate, restaurants and other businesses. He is one of the founders of alternative asset investment firm, PointNorth Capital. Recently Obelysk has obtained the right to develop the Canadian market for Bird e-scooters, and the franchise right to develop Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurants in Canada. Mr. Bitove was the founder, Chairman and controlling shareholder of Canadian Satellite Radio Inc. which brought satellite radio service to Canadians, in partnership with U.S.-based XM Satellite Radio. XM later merged with Sirius to become SiriusXM Canada, Canada’s fastest growing media subscription business with over 3 million subscribers. SiriusXM Canada went public in 2005 and has now gone private with Mr. Bitove remaining as a shareholder.

Mr. Bitove was the founder, principal shareholder and CEO of KEYreit, Canada’s premier “small-box” retail property owner with over 220 retail real estate properties in eight provinces across Canada. He was also the founder of Mobilicity, one of Canada’s new entrant wireless operators, which was sold to Rogers in 2015. Mr. Bitove acquired Scott’s Restaurants in 1999. Scott’s was renamed as Priszm and grew to almost 700 restaurants across Canada under the KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands, serving 2 million customers a week and employing over 10,000 people. Priszm was eventually taken public as an Income Trust.

A passionate Canadian, Mr. Bitove was the volunteer President and Chief Executive Officer of Toronto’s Bid for the 2008 Olympic Games (awarded to Beijing, China). He was the head of the organizing committees that brought the successful World Indoor Athletics (Track & Field) Championships and World Championships of Basketball to Canada in 1993 and 1994 respectively. In 1993, he founded the Toronto Raptors Basketball Club. He led the NBA franchise-bid process, launched the team and created the Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena), Toronto’s major sports and entertainment venue.

A strong believer of giving back to the community, Mr. Bitove founded S’Cool Life Fund, to support public elementary schools across Canada. Since the launch in 2005, S’Cool Life Fund has raised and donated over $3 million helping to make school life more enjoyable for thousands of public elementary school kids.

Robert Stevanovski is Co-Founder and Chairman of ACN Inc., the world’s largest direct selling telecommunications service provider. Robert has worked hard from the beginning, investing his own time and money to make a name for ACN in this highly competitive field. In addition to his daily operational duties, Robert is a distinguished ACN Board Member. His success has not slowed him down but rather encouraged Robert to continually reevaluate himself and his company. He constantly strives to be better and encourages others to work hard in relentless progression toward greater success.

Arben is a successful entrepreneur from North Macedonia, known for building businesses that have grown well beyond the region. After earning a Business Administration degree from the State University of New York, he began his career in Europe’s conferences and training sector. In 2007, he moved to the UAE, bringing his expertise to the Middle East’s fast-growing market. In 2010, he co-founded LEORON, now one of the leading corporate training and EdTech companies in the Middle East, with operations across Europe, Africa, and Central Asia. Under his leadership, the company has delivered major HR and performance improvement projects for both government and private sector clients. Arben continues to champion innovation and proudly represents North Macedonia on the global business stage.

Borko Handjiski has more than twenty years of experience in advising public sector organisations on strategy, public policy, and organisational development. He spent half of his career with the World Bank, working with governments in Europe, Asia, and Africa, followed by six years with McKinsey & Company, serving public sector clients in the Middle East and globally. Between 2021 and 2024 he was with the Abu Dhabi government, and in 2024 he joined Oliver Wyman as a Partner in its UAE office.

Throughout his career he has worked with more than hundred senior government executives across dozens of countries, including prime ministers, ministers, and heads of government agencies. Borko has coauthored several World Bank publications and has published articles on public sector topics.

Borko is from North Macedonia, but since 2007 has lived in four countries on three continents. His current family home, with his spouse and three children, is in the UAE.

Partner at Eleven heading the Healthcare investment team. One of the pioneers of private equity in SEE, Valeri brings extensive investment expertise from his roles at Global Finance, Bancroft Private Equity, and Axxess Capital. His experience spans more than 30 company boards across numerous industries. Valeri's background combines investment expertise with valuable managerial experience from his position as CEO of Orgachim and executive roles at Royal Dutch Shell.

Professor Nikica Mojsoska-Blazevski is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Macedonia2025. Nikica's prior experience was in academia, where she served two terms as Dean of the Business School at University American College-Skopje, as well as in the public administration where she worked as a Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Republic of Macedonia.

Nikica has an extensive experience of over 15 years in research, consultancy and advisory in economic policies, social systems and policy, labour markets, and education in Macedonia, as well as the Western Balkan region. She has been working with major international economic organisations and institutions, such as the World Bank, ILO, RCC, UNDP, UN Women and the European Commission. Mojsoska-Blazevski is author of many journal articles and several book chapters, mainly in the area of social policy, labour markets, education, gender issues, youth, etc.

Nikica has served as an advisor to the government institutions in Macedonia and the Western Balkan region on economic, employment and social policy issues. Nikica is a member of several professional organizations in Macedonia, as well as of well-renowned international scientific organizations.

Gavin Nicholas Ryan is a private equity and venture capital expert. He is also the author of the 2024 Private Equity Market Study of the Southeast Europe Albania Region.

His firm Wider Europe Capital Management focuses on private equity and SME finance in emerging markets, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Gavin has managed various funds, including a €2.5bn green energy fund, a $200 million private equity growth fund for Soros Investment Management and a $30 million Advent International venture fund.

From 2015 he has acted as an expert consultant and trainer and has provided advisory services to LPs and GPs in emerging markets, enhancing their investment strategies and capacity building efforts. He has also authored and co-authored around 13 major market studies in the field.

Gavin started his career in troubled company administration with Price Waterhouse Milan and worked in investment banking for 10 years in London with Nomura International and then HSBC Investment Bank, where he was involved in M&A, equity capital markets and private equity.

Gavin is also involved in philanthropy through a not-for-profit he founded, Nehemiah Impact Ventures, dedicated to promoting financial literacy among high school students.

Gavin is Italo-English and grew up in Lombardy, Italy. He has a Masters in Engineering from Cambridge University and an MBA from McGill University. He speaks fluent English, French and Italian; and good German, Serbo-Croatian and Romanian.

Muhannad is the Founding Partner of Olive Rock Partners, one of the first independent Private Equity managers in the GCC, backed by leading regional and international institutional investors. Olive Rock Partners focuses on strategic investment opportunities in the GCC, with a primary focus on Saudi Arabia and the UAE. He sits on several corporate and advisory boards regionally.

Prior to this, Muhannad was the Senior Managing Director and IC member at Gulf Capital in Abu Dhabi (14 years total), focusing on Private Equity investments in the GCC and Egypt (c. USD 1.5 billion of Private Equity funds).

Before moving to the UAE, Muhannad was a Senior Principal at Investcorp and Senior Investment Advisor at Morgan Stanley in London.

Muhannad graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), with a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering and concentrations in creative writing & economics.

Darijo joined GKCF in 2013 and is currently a Partner based in Zagreb. He has extensive corporate finance experience gained through more than 100 engagements for local and international clients, involving sell-side and buy-side M&A, fundraising, valuation, due diligence and financial restructuring. Clients with whom Darijo has actively worked with include Marlin Equity Partners, Infinum, Pentalog, Emma Capital Group, Transcom, AON, and MET Holding. Before joining GKCF he has worked for Slovakia based Budamar Logistics.

Shivendra Singh is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Maven Investment Partners, a boutique M&A and financial advisory firm serving the GCC and wider MENA region. He has more than 25 years of investment banking experience across New York and the Middle East, including over 18 years advising on corporate finance transactions in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and the wider GCC. His work spans mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, debt financings and private placements, with particular depth in the education, food, healthcare and industrial sectors.

Before co-founding Maven, he was Head of Private Equity and Corporate Finance at Wasatah Capital in Riyadh, and previously Head of Corporate Finance and Deputy Managing Director of Rasmala Investments KSA. He began his finance career in New York with Bear Stearns, JP Morgan, Jefferies Group and Arthur Andersen.

Mr. Singh holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a BS in Accounting, magna cum laude, from Binghamton University. He is a Certified Public Accountant certificate holder.

Amjad Mustafa is the founder of Yellowfin Capital Partners, a UAE-based VC firm investing in the future of the GCC across AI, digital transformation, fintech and proptech. What makes YCP different is its network across Southeast Asia and China, helping Gulf-based companies scale internationally, and its hands-on, relationship-driven approach to backing founders.

Before venture, Amjad led some of Saudi Arabia’s largest government technology projects, including the $50M+ National ID Program and SADAD, the Kingdom’s national payments system, which won the World Economic Forum Innovation Prize. He later scaled Entermarkets to $40M in revenue, including a biometrics system securing over 120 Saudi embassies worldwide.

That mix of building national infrastructure and now investing in the region’s next generation of tech companies gives him a distinct, ground-level view of how the GCC actually builds.

Dimitar Funa is an Investment Manager at Downing, a London-based investment firm with c.£2.9bn of assets under management, where he is part of the Private Equity team. He invests across private equity and private credit, with a focus on healthcare, social care, education and leisure. His work spans across the full investment cycle, from origination and execution to supporting portfolio companies at board level. 

Before joining Downing in 2024, Dimitar spent more than 2 years at a London-based strategy and commercial diligence consultancy. There he worked on 30 engagements for private equity and principal investors across technology, life sciences and healthcare, for clients including CVC, Partners Group and Bain Capital.

Dimitar holds an MSc in Finance and Accounting with Distinction from Imperial College London and completed a short programme in family business and succession planning at Harvard University. He has received young researcher awards for his work from the National Bank of Macedonia and the Macedonian Securities and Exchange Commission.

Igor Čičak is the Founder and CEO of Provectus Capital Partners (PCP), the leading regional private equity fund.

Igor is overseeing the overall strategy and management of PCP. Furthermore, as President of the Investment Committee, he is leading the firm’s portfolio construction and is involved in setting the strategic direction for the various Provectus investments.

Before starting the private equity fund, Igor founded Provectus Capital, which was specialized M&A and investment boutique focusing on SEE. Furthermore, he was the co-founder and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Optimapharm, a leading European clinical research organization, which was then sold to a global PE firm in 2020. Before this, he held top executive and senior management positions with local & international banks and large corporates.

Igor graduated from the Faculty of Economics and Business in Zagreb, completed the GMP program in Vienna, and finished the Senior Executive Program at London Business School.

Alejtin Berisha is a serial entrepreneur, educator, and investor; Co-Founder, President and CEO of UNI- Universum International College, Powered by Arizona State University, Kosovo’s most international and innovative University with over 6,000 students; the Founder of Finnish Schools International, an innovative and disruptive K-12 school network and concept, a CNN highlight and ranked in top 10 of the world’s best schools’ prizes.

Alejtin is a Founding Partner, Former Chairman and Investor of Crossplag – AI-powered Originality tool acquired by Inspera, and an investor and board member at KidsDay, an innovative AI powered platform for childcare centers’ management.

He co-founded iziSurvey, an offline and online surveying platform mainly catering to Academia and Kosovo Business Angels Network (KOSBAN), the winner of the most promising Business Angel Network in SEE (WBAF 2014)

John I. Bitove has a distinguished record of accomplishment in the corporate, sports and community endeavours. He is the sole shareholder of Obelysk, which has major investments in the wireless, satellite radio, real estate, restaurants and other businesses. He is one of the founders of alternative asset investment firm, PointNorth Capital. Recently Obelysk has obtained the right to develop the Canadian market for Bird e-scooters, and the franchise right to develop Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurants in Canada. Mr. Bitove was the founder, Chairman and controlling shareholder of Canadian Satellite Radio Inc. which brought satellite radio service to Canadians, in partnership with U.S.-based XM Satellite Radio. XM later merged with Sirius to become SiriusXM Canada, Canada’s fastest growing media subscription business with over 3 million subscribers. SiriusXM Canada went public in 2005 and has now gone private with Mr. Bitove remaining as a shareholder.

Mr. Bitove was the founder, principal shareholder and CEO of KEYreit, Canada’s premier “small-box” retail property owner with over 220 retail real estate properties in eight provinces across Canada. He was also the founder of Mobilicity, one of Canada’s new entrant wireless operators, which was sold to Rogers in 2015. Mr. Bitove acquired Scott’s Restaurants in 1999. Scott’s was renamed as Priszm and grew to almost 700 restaurants across Canada under the KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands, serving 2 million customers a week and employing over 10,000 people. Priszm was eventually taken public as an Income Trust.

A passionate Canadian, Mr. Bitove was the volunteer President and Chief Executive Officer of Toronto’s Bid for the 2008 Olympic Games (awarded to Beijing, China). He was the head of the organizing committees that brought the successful World Indoor Athletics (Track & Field) Championships and World Championships of Basketball to Canada in 1993 and 1994 respectively. In 1993, he founded the Toronto Raptors Basketball Club. He led the NBA franchise-bid process, launched the team and created the Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena), Toronto’s major sports and entertainment venue.

A strong believer of giving back to the community, Mr. Bitove founded S’Cool Life Fund, to support public elementary schools across Canada. Since the launch in 2005, S’Cool Life Fund has raised and donated over $3 million helping to make school life more enjoyable for thousands of public elementary school kids.

Robert Stevanovski is Co-Founder and Chairman of ACN Inc., the world’s largest direct selling telecommunications service provider. Robert has worked hard from the beginning, investing his own time and money to make a name for ACN in this highly competitive field. In addition to his daily operational duties, Robert is a distinguished ACN Board Member. His success has not slowed him down but rather encouraged Robert to continually reevaluate himself and his company. He constantly strives to be better and encourages others to work hard in relentless progression toward greater success.

Michael Cklamovski is a Senior Managing Director and President of the Northern California region based in the San Francisco office. In this role, Michael is responsible for leading the Wealth Management business in the Bay Area and neighboring communities.

Previously, Cklamovski served as West Region Market Executive, Managing Director and Banking Team Lead at CIBC Private Bank, and as a Private Client Advisor at US Trust. Prior to his wealth management experience, Michael was a practicing litigation attorney for Fidelity National Financial. Michael received a dual B.A. degree in both Political Science and Communications from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a J.D. from the Northern Illinois University College of Law, Cum Laude.

Michael has served as an officer and board member with various charitable, civic and educational organizations in the Bay Area and Chicago. Currently, he serves as Chairman of the Board of Macedonia2025, an international ‘thank & do’tank, on the advisory board of the Veteran’s Business Project and as a Fighting Illini mentor serving current student-athletes at his Alma Mater.

Professor Nikica Mojsoska-Blazevski is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Macedonia2025. Nikica's prior experience was in academia, where she served two terms as Dean of the Business School at University American College-Skopje, as well as in the public administration where she worked as a Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Republic of Macedonia.

Nikica has an extensive experience of over 15 years in research, consultancy and advisory in economic policies, social systems and policy, labour markets, and education in Macedonia, as well as the Western Balkan region. She has been working with major international economic organisations and institutions, such as the World Bank, ILO, RCC, UNDP, UN Women and the European Commission. Mojsoska-Blazevski is author of many journal articles and several book chapters, mainly in the area of social policy, labour markets, education, gender issues, youth, etc.

Nikica has served as an advisor to the government institutions in Macedonia and the Western Balkan region on economic, employment and social policy issues. Nikica is a member of several professional organizations in Macedonia, as well as of well-renowned international scientific organizations.

Viktor Mizo is the Managing Director of Kostal Macedonia and Vice President for Governmental Affairs at Kostal Group – global leader in design and manufacturing of advanced electronics and mechatronics products for the automotive industry. He is also President of the Foreign Investors Council within the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia.

He is also President of the Association of foreign companies with technologically advanced manufacturing within the auspices of the Economic Chamber of Macedonia and an outside expert for McKinsey on various economic development, FDI and free zones projects around the World. Mr. Mizo brings to Kostal a record of exceptional leadership and strategic vision, responsible for numerous greenfield investment projects by multinational companies that have located their production or service operations in Macedonia as a CEO of the Macedonia Free Zone Authority over a period of six year.

Prior to that, he spent four years as CEO of Invest Macedonia, where he played a critical role in putting Macedonia on the radar of potential investors looking to expand in Europe and was a key member of the Government’s economic team. He co-founded and managed a technology company specialized in digital file distribution for mobile phones in Japan, as well as an internet start-up in the media and entertainment space in London and New York. Preceding this, Mr. Mizo was a technology and financial services consultant at McKinsey’s New York office.

He began his career as a design engineer at Magna International and a member of the esteemed Technical Leadership Program at General Electric where he worked on locomotive design that culminated in a Black Belt position in the Six Sigma quality initiative. Mr. Mizo received his B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology, graduating summa cum laude. An alumnus of Harvard University, he holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

Mike Zafirovski is the Founder, Chairman, and President of The Zaf Group (TZG), a family office engaged in operating, investment, and advisory activities. Since the mid-2010s, TZG has focused on acquiring and building well-run founder-led businesses, with an emphasis on operational excellence and long-term value creation.

Mike serves as Chairman of TZG portfolio companies, and his wife, Robin, is Co-Chair of The Zaf Group. TZG’s current portfolio consists of two companies: Tusker and Storr Office Environments. Tusker is a fast-growing national IT solutions platform providing a broad range of advisory, professional, managed and lifecycle technology solutions. Tusker (formerly operated as ACP CreativIT) was built through the acquisition of five strong regional founder-led IT services businesses with a cumulative history of more than 175 years.

Storr Office Environments, acquired in October 2025 is one of the largest Steelcase dealers in the United States. Founded in 1914 and headquartered in Raleigh, NC, Storr provides full-service workplace furniture solutions and a growing portfolio of complementary Storr Services, including warehousing, logistics, installation, repair, and refurbishment. Before establishing TZG, Mike was an Executive Advisor to Blackstone (2011–2021) and served on the boards of Boeing (2004–2020), Stericycle (2012–2022), Apria Healthcare (2011–2022), Nortel (2006–2009), Motorola (2002–2005), and several other Blackstone portfolio companies.

During his corporate career, Mike served as President and/or CEO at Nortel, Motorola, and five GE businesses. Throughout 21+ years of full P&L leadership, revenue growth averaged over 8% annually, productivity gains exceeded 6% per year, and EBITDA margins improved by an average of 350 basis points per year. From 2006 to 2010, Mike was appointed by the President of the United States to serve on the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC), advising on matters related to telecommunications, information technology, cybersecurity, and national security.

Mike and Robin established The Zafirovski Family Foundation in 2005, focusing on education, healthcare, faith-based ministries, and economic development. A native of Macedonia, Mike is also the co-founder and director of Macedonia 2025, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the country’s economic growth and democratic development. Under its umbrella, and in partnership with Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, the Zafirovski Executive Development Program has helped prepare more than 100 future CEOs and senior executives.

Mike’s other philanthropic and civic engagements include serving on the Board of Directors of Special Olympics, the Coach K Leadership & Ethics Center Advisory Board (COLE), and the Council of Chief Executives (former Chairman). He is also a member of The CEO Forum, the American Enterprise Institute, and the Economic Club of Chicago. In 2009, he cofounded the Faith@Work Ministry at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Lake Forest, IL, and previously chaired AUSL, an organization focused on improving teacher quality and educational outcomes in Chicago’s turnaround public schools.

Mike holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Edinboro University, where he captained the soccer and swimming teams. He received an honorary doctorate in public service in 2002 and was inducted into the University’s Sports Hall of Fame. His honors include the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Leadership Award from the New York Hall of Science, the Medal of Honor from the President of Macedonia, the John L. Bitove Philanthropy Award, the Navy SEAL Foundation Patriot Award, AUSL’s Leadership Impact in Education Award. Married for 43 years, Mike and Robin have three married sons, all involved in The Zaf Group and its portfolio companies, and nine grandchildren.

His personal interests include family, mentoring, travel, and a lifelong love for endurance sports. He has completed nine Ironman races and fourteen marathons, including the California Ironman in 2024, where he won his age group and qualified for the World Championships. He is now beginning to devote more time to golf.

Professor Nikica Mojsoska-Blazevski is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Macedonia2025. Nikica's prior experience was in academia, where she served two terms as Dean of the Business School at University American College-Skopje, as well as in the public administration where she worked as a Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Republic of Macedonia.

Nikica has an extensive experience of over 15 years in research, consultancy and advisory in economic policies, social systems and policy, labour markets, and education in Macedonia, as well as the Western Balkan region. She has been working with major international economic organisations and institutions, such as the World Bank, ILO, RCC, UNDP, UN Women and the European Commission. Mojsoska-Blazevski is author of many journal articles and several book chapters, mainly in the area of social policy, labour markets, education, gender issues, youth, etc.

Nikica has served as an advisor to the government institutions in Macedonia and the Western Balkan region on economic, employment and social policy issues. Nikica is a member of several professional organizations in Macedonia, as well as of well-renowned international scientific organizations.

Professor Nikica Mojsoska-Blazevski is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Macedonia2025. Nikica's prior experience was in academia, where she served two terms as Dean of the Business School at University American College-Skopje, as well as in the public administration where she worked as a Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Republic of Macedonia.

Nikica has an extensive experience of over 15 years in research, consultancy and advisory in economic policies, social systems and policy, labour markets, and education in Macedonia, as well as the Western Balkan region. She has been working with major international economic organisations and institutions, such as the World Bank, ILO, RCC, UNDP, UN Women and the European Commission. Mojsoska-Blazevski is author of many journal articles and several book chapters, mainly in the area of social policy, labour markets, education, gender issues, youth, etc.

Nikica has served as an advisor to the government institutions in Macedonia and the Western Balkan region on economic, employment and social policy issues. Nikica is a member of several professional organizations in Macedonia, as well as of well-renowned international scientific organizations.

Metodija Papazoski is a Cofounder and Vice President of EMBS Group, a global market intelligence and advisory company. He has more than 15 years of experience consulting to Fortune 500 companies across a variety of industries including healthcare, industrial goods, consumer goods, and financial services. Metodija is also a frequent speaker at industry events, such as SCIP's and CIMICON's International Conferences.

Areas of expertise: market entry and business development, strategic advisory, market sizing, competitive intelligence (CI).

Metodija holds an MA degree in International Business Management from Bradford University and a BA in Economics from the University of Skopje. He resides in Krakow, Poland with his wife Zuzana and their three children. Metodija enjoys playing basketball, reading, travelling and CrossFit.

Since year 2006, Mukaetov is heading the biggest Macedonian pharmaceutical industry, “Alkaloid AD Skopje”.Founded in 1936, “Alkaloid” brand is recognizable and well-established, just like its motto- “Health above all”…slogan of one of the key drivers of the Macedonian economy and one of the leading pharmaceutical industries in Southeastern Europe. Headquartered in Skopje, “Alkaloid” places its products in over 40 countries worldwide through its 20 subsidiaries abroad.

For his extraordinary endeavors in the sphere of culture, sports, business and corporate social responsibility, Mukaetov was awarded various national and international acknowledgments. He was decorated with two orders: “Order of the Danish Flag” on behalf of Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark for valuable services as Consul General of the Kingdom of Denmark (a function he’s performing since 2007) and the “Order of Merit” by the President of the Republic of North Macedonia, H.E. Mr. Stevo Pendarovski for impeccable professional standards in the modern corporate management in the pharmaceutical industry, investments in new technology, education as well as philanthropic culture and broad social responsibility.Mukaetov is a member of the management boards of various economically important institutions in his country, such as vice-president of the “Chamber of Commerce”.

Since 2013, he is President of the “Macedonian Handball Federation” presently running his third mandate and besides being a patron of the Chess Club “Alkaloid”, in 2021 he founded the Handball Club “Alkaloid” aimed at supporting young Macedonian handball talents.In 2014, Mukaetov joined the prestigious organization “Forum of Young Global Leaders”. Under their auspices, he attended trainings at the prestigious American “University of Yale” in New Haven, CT the “Harvard Kennedy School” in Cambridge, MA and the United Kingdom’s “Saїd Business School” in Oxford.Since 2007, Mukaetov is presiding the Foundation “Trajche Mukaetov” aimed at supporting young and talented students and professionals who devoted their careers to medicine and pharmacy. Up to date, this Foundation donated EUR 1.9 million for scholarships and premiums to valedictorians.Zhivko and his wife Emilija are devoted parents of four children.

Aleksandar Seratlić is a distinguished business leader with more than 20 years of executive experience across retail, telecommunications, and FMCG sectors in Southeast Europe. He currently serves as CEO and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Mercata VT, MPC Holding, and is a member of the Supervisory Boards of Kraš and MPC Investment.

Throughout his career, he has led major business transformations, market expansions, and organizational growth initiatives, including senior leadership roles at Mercator-S, Idea, SBB, United Group, TDR, and Ledo. Known for his strategic approach to leadership, change management, and customer-focused growth, he has built a strong track record in developing high-performing teams and driving long-term business value. He holds a Master’s degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Zagreb and completed the General Management Program at Harvard Business School.

Ana is the head of Visa company for Southeast Europe as of February 2024, where together with her team of experts, she develops initiatives aimed at further improving the payment industry, developing cashless payments, and expanding the local economy to the global market through innovative models of electronic transactions.

Previously, Ana was part of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in London, where she worked as the Director of Development Business Banks in more than 70 countries. Before that, she held various positions, including Partner at KPMG, Vice President at Citibank, Operations Officer at the World Bank, and Associate at JP Morgan in London.

Ana holds a master's degree in international relations from the University of Westminster in London as a Chevening Scholar of the British government and has additional training in innovation and digital transformations from Cambridge Judge Business School.

Ognjen Lazić is the General Manager of Pivara Skopje as of June 2025. With a strong foundation in finance and strategy, Ognjen brings over a decade of experience in the FMCG and beverage industries. He is known for his forward-thinking leadership style, combining analytical precision with a deep understanding of consumer and market dynamics.

Prior to joining Pivara Skopje, Ognjen held several key leadership roles at Bambi, where he joined in 2018 as Chief Financial Officer. He played a pivotal role in the company’s integration into the Coca-Cola Hellenic Beverage Company, earning recognition for financial leadership and efficiency. From 2023 to 2025, he served as Marketing & Commercial Excellence Director, where he led the development of Bambi’s End-to-End marketing strategy, launched a new R&D center, and introduced Revenue Growth Management (RGM).

Ognjen began his career and gained valuable experience in the beverage industry and as a consultant at Ernst & Young, where he specialized in audit and M&A transaction advisory, including international assignments in EY Dubai. His work focused on financial modeling, investment evaluation, and strategic consulting for clients across multiple sectors .

He holds a bachelor’s degree in finance and accounting from the Faculty of Economics, University of Belgrade. As an AIESEC alumnus, Ognjen has demonstrated a long-standing commitment to leadership, global collaboration, and continuous learning.

Aleksandar Nikoloski is a prominent Macedonian politician and graduate in political science. He was born on 24 March 1984.

He graduated from the Faculty of Law Iustinianus Primus within the University Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Skopje where he obtained the title of BA in political science. Afterwards Nikoloski continued his education at the same faculty where he became a candidate for master's in political science and international relations.

His professional career started in 2000 when he became a President of the High-School Union of Macedonia. He held that position until 2002. In the period between 2002 until 2004, Nikoloski was a Secretary of FRESTA - the programme for non-governmental organisations and multi-ethnic dialogue of SEE, supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Denmark.

In 2006 Nikoloski was elected member of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia where he performed his duties by 2016. He was re-elected in 2002 and discharged his duty until 2024. In the Assembly he was a member and president of several commissions and committees, including the Committee on Rules of Procedure and Mandatory-Immunity Issues, Foreign Policy Committee, Committee on Constitutional Issues and the Committee on the Political System and Inter-Ethnic Relations. Nikoloski was also an active participant in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe where he performed the duty of a Vice-President in the period 2015-2017. He was the first Vice-President of the Committee on Political Issues and Democracy and first Vice-President of the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee).

During his career Nikoloski was awarded numerous acknowledgments and awards. He was elected European Young Leader 40 under 40 most influential persons in Europe in 2022 by the organisation "Friends of Europe", an official selection of the European Union.

Aleksandar Nikoloski is fluent in English and French.

Borijan Borozanov has more than 20 years of experience in international management and corporate leadership roles. Currently, he is serving as Manufacturing Director for Central and Eastern Europe for Johnson Matthey, a FTSE 100 company, and a leading global provider of clean air technologies. His earlier work history includes building up the new Delphi Electronic Systems factory and serving as plant manager for Aptiv Services.

Borijan had a variety of positions in the European automotive sector before moving back to North Macedonia, including Strategic Manufacturing Footprint Planner as part of his Rotational Leadership Development Program. Additionally, he oversaw Invest Macedonia’s Investor Servicing Division and contributed to the execution of over 12 investment projects in North Macedonia’s automotive supply chain.

Viktor Mizo is the Managing Director of Kostal Macedonia and Vice President for Governmental Affairs at Kostal Group – global leader in design and manufacturing of advanced electronics and mechatronics products for the automotive industry. He is also President of the Foreign Investors Council within the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia.

He is also President of the Association of foreign companies with technologically advanced manufacturing within the auspices of the Economic Chamber of Macedonia and an outside expert for McKinsey on various economic development, FDI and free zones projects around the World. Mr. Mizo brings to Kostal a record of exceptional leadership and strategic vision, responsible for numerous greenfield investment projects by multinational companies that have located their production or service operations in Macedonia as a CEO of the Macedonia Free Zone Authority over a period of six year.

Prior to that, he spent four years as CEO of Invest Macedonia, where he played a critical role in putting Macedonia on the radar of potential investors looking to expand in Europe and was a key member of the Government’s economic team. He co-founded and managed a technology company specialized in digital file distribution for mobile phones in Japan, as well as an internet start-up in the media and entertainment space in London and New York. Preceding this, Mr. Mizo was a technology and financial services consultant at McKinsey’s New York office.

He began his career as a design engineer at Magna International and a member of the esteemed Technical Leadership Program at General Electric where he worked on locomotive design that culminated in a Black Belt position in the Six Sigma quality initiative. Mr. Mizo received his B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology, graduating summa cum laude. An alumnus of Harvard University, he holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

Tom Klein is an international transformation consultant and organizational developer with more than 30 years of hands-on experience guiding companies, leaders, and teams through change. As the founder of Tom Klein & Co., he helps organizations build high-performance cultures rooted in freedom, responsibility, and trust.

Over the years, Tom worked in around 40 countries, supporting transformation across strategy, leadership, and culture. His work focuses on creating the organizational framework needed for highly motivated performance cultures, while preparing individuals and teams to embark on and master their own learning paths. As a Business Senator in the Senate of the Economy of Germany, Tom works closely with entrepreneurs to address business development challenges and drive sustainable growth.

Through coaching, workshops, and cultural interventions, Tom enables leaders and employees to become active participants in shaping their organizations. His clients consistently highlight his ability to create trust, inspire motivation, and provide clarity in complex transformation processes. He believes true change succeeds when structures adapt to people, unleashing creativity, resilience, and long-term growth.

Tom also mentors executives, supporting them personally and professionally as they design and manage transformation initiatives.

Sally Yuanyuan Qin is a Partner at BakerHostetler in Washington, D.C., where she focuses on antitrust and competition law, complex litigation, and government investigations. Sally leads BakerHostetler's Asia practice. She advises multinational companies on U.S. and cross-border risk assessments, investigations, and complex commercial litigations. Her practice also spans white-collar defense, congressional inquiries, and parallel enforcement matters involving U.S. and foreign regulators. Sally regularly guides senior executives through high-stakes enforcement scenarios such as dawn raids, subpoenas, and multi-jurisdictional investigations, helping organizations manage legal risk while supporting strategic business objectives.

Sally serves as outside in-house counsel to emerging growth companies, managing a broad range of legal matters and advising management teams on staffing and risk mitigation as companies grow. Born and raised in China, she gained early professional experience working with the National People's Congress of China, CCTV, China Daily, and Shanghai Media Group. This background provides her with deep familiarity with Chinese business, regulatory, and political environments, which significantly informs her cross-border practice and her work with clients facing complex international and regulatory challenges. Sally is a guest lecturer at Shanghai Jiaotong University and frequently speaks at international conferences.

Ana Arsov is a senior financial services executive and board member with more than 25 years experience at Wall Street's leading financial institutions. She currently serves as an operating partner and senior advisor at Blackrock Private Financing Solutions and is also a Chief Investment Officer of her family office, Bright Fame Holdings.

Ana also serves on the boards of Toronto Dominion Bank Group and Lumus Group. Before her advisory and board roles, she spent more than 2 decades at leadership positions at Moody's Corporation, UBS Investment Bank, Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers. Ana hails from Skopje and is based in the New York area and Florida.

Mike Zafirovski is the Founder, Chairman, and President of The Zaf Group (TZG), a family office engaged in operating, investment, and advisory activities. Since the mid-2010s, TZG has focused on acquiring and building well-run founder-led businesses, with an emphasis on operational excellence and long-term value creation.

Mike serves as Chairman of TZG portfolio companies, and his wife, Robin, is Co-Chair of The Zaf Group. TZG’s current portfolio consists of two companies: Tusker and Storr Office Environments. Tusker is a fast-growing national IT solutions platform providing a broad range of advisory, professional, managed and lifecycle technology solutions. Tusker (formerly operated as ACP CreativIT) was built through the acquisition of five strong regional founder-led IT services businesses with a cumulative history of more than 175 years.

Storr Office Environments, acquired in October 2025 is one of the largest Steelcase dealers in the United States. Founded in 1914 and headquartered in Raleigh, NC, Storr provides full-service workplace furniture solutions and a growing portfolio of complementary Storr Services, including warehousing, logistics, installation, repair, and refurbishment. Before establishing TZG, Mike was an Executive Advisor to Blackstone (2011–2021) and served on the boards of Boeing (2004–2020), Stericycle (2012–2022), Apria Healthcare (2011–2022), Nortel (2006–2009), Motorola (2002–2005), and several other Blackstone portfolio companies.

During his corporate career, Mike served as President and/or CEO at Nortel, Motorola, and five GE businesses. Throughout 21+ years of full P&L leadership, revenue growth averaged over 8% annually, productivity gains exceeded 6% per year, and EBITDA margins improved by an average of 350 basis points per year. From 2006 to 2010, Mike was appointed by the President of the United States to serve on the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC), advising on matters related to telecommunications, information technology, cybersecurity, and national security.

Mike and Robin established The Zafirovski Family Foundation in 2005, focusing on education, healthcare, faith-based ministries, and economic development. A native of Macedonia, Mike is also the co-founder and director of Macedonia 2025, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the country’s economic growth and democratic development. Under its umbrella, and in partnership with Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, the Zafirovski Executive Development Program has helped prepare more than 100 future CEOs and senior executives.

Mike’s other philanthropic and civic engagements include serving on the Board of Directors of Special Olympics, the Coach K Leadership & Ethics Center Advisory Board (COLE), and the Council of Chief Executives (former Chairman). He is also a member of The CEO Forum, the American Enterprise Institute, and the Economic Club of Chicago. In 2009, he cofounded the Faith@Work Ministry at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Lake Forest, IL, and previously chaired AUSL, an organization focused on improving teacher quality and educational outcomes in Chicago’s turnaround public schools.

Mike holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Edinboro University, where he captained the soccer and swimming teams. He received an honorary doctorate in public service in 2002 and was inducted into the University’s Sports Hall of Fame. His honors include the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Leadership Award from the New York Hall of Science, the Medal of Honor from the President of Macedonia, the John L. Bitove Philanthropy Award, the Navy SEAL Foundation Patriot Award, AUSL’s Leadership Impact in Education Award. Married for 43 years, Mike and Robin have three married sons, all involved in The Zaf Group and its portfolio companies, and nine grandchildren.

His personal interests include family, mentoring, travel, and a lifelong love for endurance sports. He has completed nine Ironman races and fourteen marathons, including the California Ironman in 2024, where he won his age group and qualified for the World Championships. He is now beginning to devote more time to golf.

Tamara Milovanović is the Managing Director of Philip Morris International for South East Europe, with over 15 years of experience in senior leadership roles across finance, strategic planning, and business development at PMI. She leads the company’s operations across the South East Europe cluster, with full responsibility for business performance, organizational leadership, and strategic transformation.

Prior to assuming her current role in 2025, Tamara served as Vice President of Finance for the EU Region, where she supported regional leadership in long‑term planning, capital allocation, and transformation initiatives. Earlier in her career, she held a number of senior roles in finance and business development at both country and regional levels, building strong expertise in managing complex, multi‑market operations.

In her current position, Tamara focuses on driving accelerated innovation, portfolio diversification, and the transition from traditional business models toward more sustainable and technology‑driven solutions, in line with PMI’s long‑term vision. She is known for her strategic mindset, disciplined execution, and ability to lead organizations through change in highly dynamic environments.

John I. Bitove has a distinguished record of accomplishment in the corporate, sports and community endeavours. He is the sole shareholder of Obelysk, which has major investments in the wireless, satellite radio, real estate, restaurants and other businesses. He is one of the founders of alternative asset investment firm, PointNorth Capital. Recently Obelysk has obtained the right to develop the Canadian market for Bird e-scooters, and the franchise right to develop Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurants in Canada. Mr. Bitove was the founder, Chairman and controlling shareholder of Canadian Satellite Radio Inc. which brought satellite radio service to Canadians, in partnership with U.S.-based XM Satellite Radio. XM later merged with Sirius to become SiriusXM Canada, Canada’s fastest growing media subscription business with over 3 million subscribers. SiriusXM Canada went public in 2005 and has now gone private with Mr. Bitove remaining as a shareholder.

Mr. Bitove was the founder, principal shareholder and CEO of KEYreit, Canada’s premier “small-box” retail property owner with over 220 retail real estate properties in eight provinces across Canada. He was also the founder of Mobilicity, one of Canada’s new entrant wireless operators, which was sold to Rogers in 2015. Mr. Bitove acquired Scott’s Restaurants in 1999. Scott’s was renamed as Priszm and grew to almost 700 restaurants across Canada under the KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands, serving 2 million customers a week and employing over 10,000 people. Priszm was eventually taken public as an Income Trust. A passionate Canadian, Mr. Bitove was the volunteer President and Chief Executive Officer of Toronto’s Bid for the 2008 Olympic Games (awarded to Beijing, China).

He was the head of the organizing committees that brought the successful World Indoor Athletics (Track & Field) Championships and World Championships of Basketball to Canada in 1993 and 1994 respectively. In 1993, he founded the Toronto Raptors Basketball Club. He led the NBA franchise-bid process, launched the team and created the Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena), Toronto’s major sports and entertainment venue. A strong believer of giving back to the community, Mr. Bitove founded S’Cool Life Fund, to support public elementary schools across Canada. Since the launch in 2005, S’Cool Life Fund has raised and donated over $3 million helping to make school life more enjoyable for thousands of public elementary school kids.

Andrew Wrobel is a reinvention strategist working at the intersection of systems, strategy, and future relevance. As Chief Reinvention Officer at Reinvantage, he helps governments, corporates, and start-ups rethink the operational architecture beneath performance—how decisions are structured, value is captured, incentives align, and resilience is embedded.

His work centres on systemic reinvention: redesigning the logic of how organisations function, not just what they plan, so they remain relevant as context shifts. Andrew advises leaders across Europe and emerging markets, delivers keynote talks on reinvention, and is the author of Capture What You Create, a book on value capture in an age of constant change.

Jordan Bitove is the CEO and Chairman of NordStar Capital, Publisher of the Toronto Star and Owner of Torstar Corporation. Torstar's news organizations deliver trusted reporting and high-quality journalism.

More than 11 million Canadians turn to Torstar for their news every month. Torstar's news organizations include the Toronto Star and over 60 local news brands across Ontario. Jordan's distinguished career at the forefront of Canadian business includes ownership of Canada's leading media brands, and significant investment in businesses related to technology, online gaming, real estate, hospitality, natural resources, and distribution.

As a leader in Canada's sports industry, Jordan helped launch the Toronto Raptors basketball team, the first NBA franchise awarded outside the United States, and he was part of the ownership consortium that built the SkyDome (now Rogers Centre). Jordan was a member of the Board of Trustees for SickKids Foundation from 2012 to 2025. He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Toronto International Film Festival, the Board of Governors of Western University, and the Canadian Advisory Board for Right to Play.

In 2012, he was a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal for his philanthropic work. In November 2023, Jordan was awarded the Order of Ontario, the province's highest civilian honour for extraordinary contributions. He received the King Charles III Coronation Medal in July 2025 for meritorious public service. Jordan is a graduate of Western University and holds the position of Honorary Consul to the Republic of North Macedonia.

Elizabeth Naumovski is a multi award-winning financial literacy & female empowerment advocate, television host, moderator, emcee, speaker and is Board certified. Elizabeth is the recipient of the 2025 Wealth Professional Pier 4 Award for Female Trailblazer of the Year. In 2022, she received the noteworthy Queen's Platinum Jubilee award for her contribution to community. Elizabeth is honoured to be the 2021 & 2019 inaugural recipient of the Wealth Professional IFSE Institute Award for Financial Literacy Champion.

Elizabeth is proud to be a 2020 Alumni of Distinction Award winner for Creative Arts & Design. Since winning the award, she created the Elizabeth Naumovski Alumni of Distinction Bursary, for a single mother (or woman) enrolled in any STEM course at Mohawk College. She is Vice President Marketing at Caldwell Securities, since 1997, and is responsible for marketing, corporate communications & public relations. She has her Chartered Marketer Designation. Since 2023, she is the host of EMPOWERED. with Elizabeth Naumovski, a weekly Canadian national television show on the News Forum Network, aimed at empowering women and future female Canadian leaders. Empowered airs every Wednesday & Friday at 7:30pm EDT.

She decided to host only female guests to give women a voice. To watch episodes of EMPOWERED. click here: https://thenewsforum.ca/series/empowered/ or on her YouTube channel. She is on the Advisory Council of the United Macedonian Diaspora ("UMD"). She is a past Board member of the Macedonian Film Festival. She was a member of the Canadian Capital Markets Association's (CCMA) T+1 Communications & Education Committee, on the Advisory Committee of Canadian Blood Services Partners Council and on the Communications Committee of the IIAC. She is Past Director of the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame & was on the Advisory Board of XTRX Solutions prior to their IPO.

Elizabeth has climbed the active volcano Stromboli, hiked through the Dolomites in Italy, snorkeled thru Silfra Fissure & hiked & climbed a glacier in Iceland. She also completed the Tough Mudder Half. She mentors young women & donates blood to Canadian Blood Services every 84 days. She has donated over 85 times. She also volunteers and feeds Toronto's homeless through the Out of the Cold program. Caldwell Securities Ltd. is regulated by Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization & a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

Ron Thomas is a globally recognized executive advisor and leadership strategist with more than two decades of experience architecting enterprise-level people, leadership, and workforce transformations across the Middle East, Africa, North America, and Asia. Known for pioneering the Workforce Architect approach, Ron works at the intersection of enterprise strategy, organizational design, leadership capability, and future-ready workforce systems.

His advisory work supports CEOs, Boards, and CHROs in translating strategy into execution through modern workforce architecture, leadership pipelines, governance models, and operating structures aligned to growth, productivity, risk, and resilience. Ron has held senior executive and board-level roles, including CHRO at Al Raha Group (Riyadh), VP HR & Board Director at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (New York), and CEO of Great Place to Work® MENA, advising organizations through large-scale transformation, culture integration, and leadership renewal.

A respected global thought leader, Ron has been consistently recognized among the world's most influential HR and leadership voices, including Top 5 HR Thinkers in the Middle East (CIPD), Asia's 50 Most Talented Global HR Leaders, Global 200 Inspirational Leaders, and Power 200: Biggest Voices in Leadership. In 2025, he was named one of the Top 10 Inspiring HR Leaders to Watch, nominated for the Global Image Awards under UAE Royal Patronage, and appointed Jury Member for the 17th HRM Summit Awards & Expo, the region's most respected HR platform. In December 2025, Ron received the Distinguished Service Award for Advancing HR Excellence in Africa, recognizing over a decade of contributions as a judge, assessor, and thought leader, shaping professional standards and leadership capabilities across the continent.

Ron is deeply engaged in academic leadership and governance. He serves as Executive Faculty at Howard University's Global HR Leadership Institute and as Faculty at the American University in the Emirates, and he sits on multiple academic advisory boards, including the MBA Advisory Board and the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) Advisory Board at The American University in the Emirates. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the Stirling Centre for Strategic Learning & Innovation in the UK, contributing to the design of future-focused leadership, learning, and innovation agendas.

In parallel, Ron is a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council and the McKinsey Quarterly Executive Panel, contributing practitioner insight to global executive discourse. Ron is the creator of several globally deployed leadership and workforce frameworks, including The Symphonic C-Suite®, the Workforce Architect Method™, the Workforce Architect: Executive Leadership Program, and the Future Leaders Program. He has delivered over 100 global keynotes in 30+ countries, influencing workforce systems and leadership models that impact more than 250,000 people worldwide.

Sashe Dimitroff is a US qualified lawyer who was born in Skopje. He is the global practice leader of BakerHostetler’s International Arbitration and Litigation team. He is the only Macedonian in the world to lead one of the top 100 practices in the world, as ranked by Global Arbitration Review (GAR) 100 firm.

Sashe is also ranked in both Chambers USA and Global. Sashe has successfully represented U.S. and international companies in courts and arbitral tribunals around the world, including the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in Paris, the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) in Miami, the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (CPR) and the International Trade Commission (ITC) in Washington, D.C.

Sashe has won multimillion-dollar awards prosecuting clients’ claims and has successfully defended Fortune 100 companies in multi-plaintiff lawsuits alleging up to $300 million in damages. Sashe is currently listed as an arbitrator by both the ICDR and the international division of the American Arbitration Association, as well as its complex commercial arbitration panels. As an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law School, Sashe teaches classes in International Arbitration and International Risk Management in Oil Field Services. Internationally respected for his insight, he has spoken extensively on international arbitration and litigation topics throughout the U.S., South America, Mexico, Canada, Qatar, Poland, Moscow, and Kazakhstan.

Mag. Wolfgang Maier is Chairman of the Management Board of EVN Macedonia AD, a position he has held since July 2023. Born in 1965, he graduated from the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration.

With over 30 years of experience in the energy sector, he has held a number of senior leadership roles within the EVN Group, including Managing Director of EVN Business Service GmbH and Member of the Board of EVN Pensionskasse AG. He has also served as a Member of the Supervisory Board of Netz NÖ GmbH and EVN Macedonia AD Skopje.

From 2010, he led the EVN Group Function Human Resources with full power of attorney, playing a key role in shaping the Group’s strategic HR direction. Throughout his career, he has also been actively involved in high-level steering committees within EVN Group.

At the national level in Austria, he contributed as a member of the Social Policy Committee of the Federation of Austrian Industries, as well as in personnel and collective agreement negotiation committees within the Federation of Austrian Energy.

His extensive leadership experience, combined with deep expertise in organizational development and energy sector governance, positions him as a key contributor to the ongoing transformation and growth of the energy industry in the region.

Ambassador Christopher R. Hill is a professional American diplomat who has served under seven presidents since entering the U.S. Foreign Service in 1977. Hill is a five-time ambassador across multiple regions in Senate-confirmed positions, including as ambassador to Iraq, the Republic of Korea, Poland, North Macedonia and most recently to the Republic of Serbia until January 2025.

He was also Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. As the senior U.S. negotiator, Hill led U.S. efforts at the Six Party Talks to end North Korea's nuclear weapons program in 2005-2009. Earlier, he was a lead State Department negotiator in Dayton, Ohio, the process that ended the war in Bosnia. Later, he was the U.S. special envoy in negotiations that led to the end of the Kosovo war. In addition, Hill served as a senior director in the National Security Council staff and as a special assistant to President Clinton.

He earned a BA at Bowdoin College and MA from the Naval War College. Outside of the foreign service he was the Dean of the Korbel School at the University of Denver and taught at Columbia University. He began his career as a Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa. Most recently, the Fletcher School at Tufts University has appointed Ambassador Christopher R. Hill, professor of practice, as executive director of the Edward R. Murrow Center for Global Diplomacy.

Svetozar Janevski started his long and remarkable career in Pivara Skopje Brewery, after graduating at the Faculty of Technology in Skopje in 1976, working in the production, research and development and the business restructuring. In 1985 he was appointed general director of the brewery and under his leadership it experienced a real renaissance and became one of the most profitable companies in the country, later establishing strategic partnerships with the global corporations Heineken and Coca-Cola. The working experience at Pivara Skopje was one of the key stages in the career of Svetozar Janevski, because with him at the head of the company, a transformation was carried out in the form of privatization followed by restructuring.

However, for him this transformation meant more than just a new legal form or a modernized way of managing. His first concern was the production, with an ambition and determination to improve the quality of the production, which required significant investments, which all led to the decision to enter the international groups of Heineken and Coca-Cola as part of the capital, in order to secure the necessary funds. The next striking feature in Svetozar Janevski's career is the purchase of the largest winery in the country – “Tikveš”, whereas his primary focus was on the quality of production and the investments for its improvement.

At the same time, over 40 million euros were injected into this company, and 20 years later the results are spectacular. At present the winery “Tikveš” has the primacy on the Macedonian market and is far ahead of its competition, but more than half of the production is now intended for export to neighbouring countries, to the entire region in a wider sense and increasingly, to the rest of the world. “Tikveš” today contributes to the international reputation of North Macedonia. Under his leadership, as the chairman of the Board of Directors of “Tikveš” since 2003, this company experienced a complete transformation. From a company that recorded losses and lack of investment, it grew into a producer of top wines, a leader of the wine industry in the country and the region and one of the most innovative wineries in the world (recognition awarded in 2008 at the Wine Innovation Forum in Paris). In 2011, two Tikveš wines scored a high 90 and 94 points from the world-renowned wine critic Robert Parker, while in 2012, Tikveš was listed among the top 100 new global brands by Marketing and Advertising Global.

Today, “Tikveš” is one of the most awarded wineries in the world, with over 1000 international awards received. Janevski is equally credited for intensive investments in all segments of the winery's operations, starting with investments in the vineyards, investments in the application of modern agro-technical methods for vineyard processing, investments in state-of-the-art technology and equipment for wine production, as well as in development of human resources, in the distribution and sales network, marketing and promotion. These activities contributed to the international presence of the “Tikveš”wines which can be found in the markets of more than 30 countries world-wide, including the extremely competitive markets in USA and Great Britain, thus promoting the Macedonian wines and the uniqueness of the terroirs in the Tikveš wine region. As a result of his far-reaching vision for the development of “Tikveš” and the entire Macedonian wine industry, the most recent investments of the winery are aimed at its transformation into the first green winery in the region and towards ESG-standardization and activities that аre contributing to the reduction of the carbon footprint and towards the fight against the climate change.

“Tikveš” is IWCA Silver Membership, working to achieve Net Zero emissions by 2050 at the latest. Janevski’s professional interests expand well beyond our region, which led him to France where in 2018 he became the owner of the French estate Château de Gourdon, located in the Rhone River Valley. Dissatisfied with the quality of wines from this French winery, he made the necessary changes and two years later, in 2020 and 2021, “Terrasse à l'ombre”, the new brand of Château de Gourdon, won a double gold medal in competition with almost 300 world wines at a competition within the international fair Mundus Vini in Germany, which is one of the most famous wine competitions in the world. Through the “M6” investment group, as its founder and member from 1996 until now, apart from the beverage industry, he has also implemented numerous investment projects in the country and abroad in the fields of finance, tourism and hospitality, agricultural production, packaging production, as well as real estate development. Svetozar Janevski’s professional career shows him to be a successful businessman, but above all, an entrepreneur. Unlike the conventional businessman, the entrepreneur is the one who puts innovation before management, quality before turnover, and expertise before exposure. And it is not the search for quality, but the search for excellence that best describes Mr. Svetozar Janevski.

Dr. Anthony Michael Galea is a globally recognized sports medicine physician with over three decades of experience treating elite and professional athletes. He is the Medical Director of the Institute of Human Mechanics in Toronto and Chief Research Scientist at Antnor Ltd., specializing in regenerative medicine, injury recovery, and performance optimization.

Dr. Galea has worked with athletes at the highest levels of international sport, including the Olympic Games, World Championships, and professional leagues, serving as team physician for organizations such as Team Canada, the Toronto Argonauts, and Tennis Canada. His expertise spans sports injuries, anti-doping, and innovative therapies such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and regenerative treatments.

A published author, TEDx speaker, and frequent lecturer at global medical conferences, Dr. Galea is known for his pioneering work in helping the body heal itself and advancing the future of sports medicine.

Gjorgje Vojnovic is the CEO of TriglavOsiguruvanje AD, Skopje and President of the Association of Financial Organizations at the Economic Chamber. He started his professional career at the age of 15, as a basketball player. Throughout his career he played for several Macedonian and international basketball teams, and was a representative player for the National Basketball Team.

While advancing in his sports career, Vojnovic gained a University degree at the Faculty of Physical Education, University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius, Skopje. He finished his Master’s studies at Sheffield’s University City College in Thessaloniki, with a dissertation in marketing. In 2006 he was appointed as General Manager of the official Ford importer in Macedonia and in 2007 started working in the financial sector as a Member of the Management Board in the leasing company Hypo Alpe Adria Leasing.

In 2012 Vojnovic was appointed as CEO in Triglav Osiguruvanje AD, Skopje and ever since is working in the insurance sector. He attended and completed the Advanced Management Program at Northwestern University-Kellogg School of Management in 2018. In addition to his professional engagements, he is a member of numerous associations and institutions and devoted to humanitarian projects.

Previously, Kati led Azure Stream Analytics, Microsoft’s mission-critical real-time analytics service, recognized as a market leader by Forrester. Her earlier work includes significant contributions to foundational data technologies such as the .NET Entity Framework and Power Query.

With experience working across three continents, Kati is deeply committed to building diverse, inclusive, and high-performing teams. She is especially passionate about supporting women in technology and regularly advocates for girls to explore computer science and STEM careers.

Kati holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, and a Master of Science in Computer Science from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. She currently lives in Seattle, Washington, with her husband Alek and their two children. Outside of work, she enjoys skiing, running, hiking and yoga.

Vojdan Karapetkovski is the CEO of Kara5®, a next-gen digital agency headquartered in New York and Skopje, renowned for accelerating digital evolution across Switzerland, EU, US and worldwide for over a decade. With a strong commitment to delivering first-class digital solutions, Kara5® has driven successful transformations and sustainable growth for clients across various industries, including BMW, MINI, CVA, SpiroChem, Emerald, Abhati, Modirum, Connect and more.

Under his leadership, Kara5® has cemented its position as a digital pioneer in Macedonia, ranking among the top 2% of the most successful companies in the country for five consecutive years. The agency is also a long-standing Google Partner, recognized for its expertise in high-impact digital advertising. As a regular keynote speaker at regional conferences, he shares deep insights into data and strategy, contributing to the advancement of digital knowledge and innovation across the industry. His visionary leadership and proven track record earned him the recognition as 'Man of the Year' in 2021 in the category of Manager of the Year under 40 and a place in the '40 under 40' in Europe in 2024.

Today, Vojdan continues to shape the future of digital advertising through his work with global tech companies and brands, alongside his active role as Chief Digital Officer (CDO) at CEV – the European Volleyball Confederation in Luxembourg.

Tomas Lauko is Chief Executive Officer of Publicis Groupe Central & Eastern Europe (CEE), where he leads 14 markets through large-scale digital, data, and business transformation. Since returning to the region in 2018 after a global role in Paris, Tomas has focused on strengthening digital competitiveness by embedding AI-driven innovation, integrated platforms, and data-led operating models across the region. Under his leadership, the CEE business has outperformed industry growth every year since 2021, increasing market share despite challenging economic conditions.

A strong advocate of end-to-end transformation, Tomas initiated a global digital transformation solution developed out of CEE, supported by three Centers of Excellence in Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. These hubs accelerate scalable delivery across data, technology, and platform-enabled services, reinforcing the region's role in global capability building.

With experience spanning both client and agency environments, he is a certified innovation practitioner known for challenging the status quo — with his favourite word: Imagine.

Martin Märss is a tech and product leader in fintech with over 14 years of experience across finance, startups, and banking. His background spans data, product, engineering, and compliance, giving him a practical perspective on building digital financial services in regulated environments. As Senior Product Manager for Iute’s digital channels, he leads the evolution of digital-first financial services by connecting data, product strategy, and execution to turn insight into better customer experiences and measurable business impact. His work focuses on building data- and AI-driven products, enabling product-led transformation, and scaling high-performing product and engineering teams. He believes the strongest digital products are built when data, product, and execution stay tightly aligned around customer value.

Alek Icev is a Macedonian-American computer scientist and high tech executive based in Seattle, WA. Alek’s research background is in machine learning, data mining and bioinformatics. Alek’s industry experience spans designing core algorithms for life sciences startups, helping scale large enterprise software solutions and leading several engineering teams focused on making Google’s ads systems and platforms smarter. In his free time he is trying to find a sweet spot in his passion for techno-progressivism, stoicism and singularity while being below average soccer player and aspiring yogi. Alek and his wife Kati are blessed of being parents to two kids who share their excitement about skiing and the great northwest pacific outdoors.

Scientist, institutional leader, and science policy architect with over 27 years of experience at the intersection of molecular genetics, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and national innovation strategy. Former Director of the Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering (IMGGE) and Minister of Science, Technological Development and Innovation of Serbia (2022–2025), currently serving as Assistant Director of IMGGE for Strategy and Business Affairs and the first woman Chair of the UN ICGEB Board of Governors. Recognized for bridging frontier biomedical research with public policy, economic development, and international scientific diplomacy, with a proven track record in designing and delivering large-scale research infrastructures and innovation ecosystems.

Led the national rollout of Serbia’s COVID-19 high-throughput molecular diagnostic network, establishing scalable genomic testing capacity and strengthening long-term biosecurity and precision medicine foundations. Founded the first National Center for Sequencing and Bioinformatics in the Western Balkans, positioning Serbia as a regional genomics and AI hub.

Architect of BIO4 Campus (€450M), a flagship Bio–AI ecosystem integrating science, industry, and innovation. Instrumental in advancing global scientific cooperation, including the UN “International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (2024–2033)” and Chairing the GPAI Summit Belgrade 2024.

Currently CEO for Genomics and Diagnostics at Swiss Rocket AG, Switzerland, combining scientific excellence with strategic leadership to position biotechnology and AI as drivers of national resilience and sustainable development.

Tamara Stanković is a Senior Manager of Regulatory Affairs and Corporate Equity Projects for South East Europe at Philip Morris International (PMI), with more than 20 years of experience across scientific engagement, regulatory strategy, and corporate affairs.

In her current role, she leads the development and implementation of regional regulatory strategies and corporate equity initiatives that support the sustainable commercialization of PMI’s smoke‑free portfolio. Her work focuses on navigating complex regulatory environments, analyzing legislative and policy frameworks, and shaping evidence‑based positions that balance public health objectives, regulatory compliance, and business sustainability.

Tamara plays an important role in regional regulatory alignment, stakeholder and institutional engagement, and thought‑leadership initiatives aimed at strengthening credibility, trust, and long‑term corporate equity. She is known for her strategic mindset, integrity, and ability to translate complex regulatory and legal topics into clear, actionable insights for diverse audiences. She is passionate about fostering transparent dialogue and contributing to science‑based, proportionate, and forward‑looking regulatory frameworks.

Gjorgji Filipovski is the co-founder of BADIALA.MK, a retail and food-tech startup that started from a real domestic problem — the lack of transparency in grocery pricing and inefficient discovery of discounts and savings.

He built and scaled the first and only Macedonian mobile app ranked No.1 simultaneously on both Google Play and the Apple App Store. He is a winner of a startup pitching competition (2024/25) and has been active in ecosystem-building through CEED Accelerator, BIC Innovation Center, and the 700 Accelerator, as well as GIZ and EU4EG-supported initiatives and funds.

He is also conducting postgraduate research on startup ecosystems in Macedonia, focusing on early-stage investment dynamics, including seed and pre-seed VC and angel investing in emerging markets. His broader focus is on scaling local teams, ideas, and products across the Western Balkans, the EU, and global markets.

Darko Fidanoski is a Macedonian entrepreneur, creative director and brand builder with more than three decades of experience across design, publishing, advertising, technology, media, sport and retail. Educated as an IT engineer, he began his career in graphic design, pre-press and web technologies before developing a broader entrepreneurial path focused on building culturally relevant brands. He is the co-founder of Ars Lamina, Macedonia’s leading publishing house, producing around 300 titles annually and particularly recognized for its work in educational publishing.

He is also the co-founder of Literatura.mk, the country’s largest bookstore chain, today developed as a modern concept-store platform combining books, lifestyle, home and audio products, as well as Café Literatura spaces that have become gathering points for readers, creatives and the intellectual community. Alongside these ventures, Darko is Creative Director and Business Development Director at POINTER Creative Agency, where he leads strategy, creative concepts and business development. His recent engagements also include ownership and active involvement in the operations of JAZZ FM Radio 100.8 Skopje, as well as ownership of one of Macedonia’s leading tennis clubs - also named Pointer. His work connects creativity, education, technology, culture and entrepreneurship into brands with strong cultural and commercial impact.

Mitre Kutanovski is a Co-founder and a former Chairman of Macedonia 2025. Under the leadership of Mr. Kutanovski Macedonia 2025 opened a second office, started an annual golf outing and launched a series of business and professional networking opportunities for the Diaspora.

Prior to his involvement with Macedonia 2025, Mr. Kutanovski was the President and CEO of the Mitre Group Inc. a company that consists of: Crown Financial Advisors; Mitre Group LLC. Broker Dealer; Classic and Crown Mortgage Solutions; Crown Tax and Business Services; Crown Insurance Group; Crown Travel Agency; and the weekly radio program Voice of Macedonia.

Val co-founded LEORON in 2010 and has been spearheading its meteoric rise to one of the leading training institutes in the MENA region. She has been one of the most prominent leaders in the corporate training and development industry during the last decade and is at the forefront of its transformation. In early 2021, Val was appointed CEO at LEORON Institute after a turbulent year during the Covid crisis, which saw Val’s leadership traits and managing capabilities come to full light by transforming learning services to digital platforms. After serving as CEO for 3 years, Val now continues to shape LEORON’s strategic direction in her role as Chairwoman.

Bringing over 20 years of international business experience -much of it within the corporate training sector, she plays a significant role in advancing the L&D sector in the GCC region, particularly in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, where the governments' Vision 2030 and Vision 2031 respectively aim to transform their countries into leading global hubs for innovation and investment. Under Val's leadership, LEORON has been at the forefront of developing cutting-edge training programs and consulting services that cater to the unique needs of these fast-growing economies.

With more than a decade of experience in the GCC region alone, Val has developed a deep understanding of the local market dynamics and has built a strong network of clients and partners in the region. Her expertise has been critical in helping organizations in the GCC adapt to the new normal and prepare their workforce for future challenges. With Val guiding LEORON’s long-term vision as Chairwoman, the organization is well-positioned to make even greater contributions to the L&D sector in the EMENA region and support the realization of all major development initiatives.

Mitre Kutanovski is a Co-founder and a former Chairman of Macedonia 2025. Under the leadership of Mr. Kutanovski Macedonia 2025 opened a second office, started an annual golf outing and launched a series of business and professional networking opportunities for the Diaspora.

Prior to his involvement with Macedonia 2025, Mr. Kutanovski was the President and CEO of the Mitre Group Inc. a company that consists of: Crown Financial Advisors; Mitre Group LLC. Broker Dealer; Classic and Crown Mortgage Solutions; Crown Tax and Business Services; Crown Insurance Group; Crown Travel Agency; and the weekly radio program Voice of Macedonia.

Emil Hristov was born in Strumica, Macedonia, and came to the United States at age 15 as an exchange student. He earned a B.S. in Architecture from the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Emil began his entrepreneurial career at 22, founding a construction management company, and three years later launched a solar EPC company.

In 2017, Emil formed a joint venture with a French luxury real estate firm focused on short-term rentals, which led to frequent extended trips to Paris. Living near a neighborhood bakery reconnected him with his love of bread and inspired him to learn artisan baking. Within months, he launched an online bakery, then expanded into a commercial kitchen. Today, Emil is the founder of Domaselo Bakery, widely recognized for its sourdough and rapidly growing across South Florida—helping people rediscover real bread, just as he did during his time in Paris.

Tanja M. Dimitrievska is a senior banking executive and board member with more than 20 years of international experience in audit, risk, and governance. As Global Audit Director at Barclays Bank in the UK, she leads multi-regional teams across APAC, EMEA, and the US, driving large-scale transformation and elevating global governance standards.

A recognised leader in the governance community, Tanja is a founding Board Member of the Institute of Internal Auditors in North Macedonia and serves as Country Lead for Women on Board Adria. Through her work, she champions diversity, influence, and stronger professional and business ties between North Macedonia and the UK.

She is known for her strategic insight, cross-border leadership, and commitment to building resilient, well-governed organisations.

Jerry Naumoff serves as Lead Independent Director of the Board of Rumble. He is also Chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee as well as Audit Committee Member.

In 2025 Jerry was presented with the “Macedonian Heritage Public Service Award” by the United Macedonian Diaspora.

Mr. Naumoff is Chairman Emeritus and Founding Partner of Taskforce BPO, a business process outsourcing company with over 2,000 employees in Macedonia. Jerry previously served as CEO and Chairman of the Board of Taskforce, one of the fastest growing companies in Southeast Europe from 2017 to 2022.

Jerry served as Minister for Foreign Direct Investments for the Government of the Republic of Macedonia from 2013 to 2017. During his mandate he realized many diverse investment projects from various countries representing millions of Euros of capital investments and created thousands of direct jobs in different sectors. Prior to becoming Minister in Macedonia, he served on the Board of Macedonia 2025 and the United Macedonian Diaspora Advisory Council.

In 1993 Jerry founded The Naumoff Group, Inc., a total risk management advisory firm. His company consisted of a diverse group of Chicago headquartered clients from a wide array of industries.

After graduating from Ball State University in 1980 where he played football on an athletic scholarship, Jerry began his business career and achieved much success for two Fortune 500 Insurance companies and two of the top commercial insurance brokerage firms in Chicago.

Jerry and his wife LuAnn reside in Macedonia, have been married for over 40 years, have 6 children and 8 grandchildren. In addition to his family, Jerry is dedicated to helping Macedonia prosper by maintaining excellent relationships with the highest level of political and business leaders in Macedonia.

Jerry grew up in Columbus, Ohio in a large very close-knit Macedonian immigrant family. He worked from a very young age in their family restaurant, where he learned the most about business and life.

Viktor Mizo is the Managing Director of Kostal Macedonia and Vice President for Governmental Affairs at Kostal Group – global leader in design and manufacturing of advanced electronics and mechatronics products for the automotive industry. He is also President of the Foreign Investors Council within the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia.

He is also President of the Association of foreign companies with technologically advanced manufacturing within the auspices of the Economic Chamber of Macedonia and an outside expert for McKinsey on various economic development, FDI and free zones projects around the World. Mr. Mizo brings to Kostal a record of exceptional leadership and strategic vision, responsible for numerous greenfield investment projects by multinational companies that have located their production or service operations in Macedonia as a CEO of the Macedonia Free Zone Authority over a period of six year.

Prior to that, he spent four years as CEO of Invest Macedonia, where he played a critical role in putting Macedonia on the radar of potential investors looking to expand in Europe and was a key member of the Government’s economic team. He co-founded and managed a technology company specialized in digital file distribution for mobile phones in Japan, as well as an internet start-up in the media and entertainment space in London and New York. Preceding this, Mr. Mizo was a technology and financial services consultant at McKinsey’s New York office.

He began his career as a design engineer at Magna International and a member of the esteemed Technical Leadership Program at General Electric where he worked on locomotive design that culminated in a Black Belt position in the Six Sigma quality initiative. Mr. Mizo received his B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology, graduating summa cum laude. An alumnus of Harvard University, he holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

Mike Zafirovski is the Founder, Chairman, and President of The Zaf Group (TZG), a family office engaged in operating, investment, and advisory activities. Since the mid-2010s, TZG has focused on acquiring and building well-run founder-led businesses, with an emphasis on operational excellence and long-term value creation.

Mike serves as Chairman of TZG portfolio companies, and his wife, Robin, is Co-Chair of The Zaf Group. TZG’s current portfolio consists of two companies: Tusker and Storr Office Environments. Tusker is a fast-growing national IT solutions platform providing a broad range of advisory, professional, managed and lifecycle technology solutions. Tusker (formerly operated as ACP CreativIT) was built through the acquisition of five strong regional founder-led IT services businesses with a cumulative history of more than 175 years.

Storr Office Environments, acquired in October 2025 is one of the largest Steelcase dealers in the United States. Founded in 1914 and headquartered in Raleigh, NC, Storr provides full-service workplace furniture solutions and a growing portfolio of complementary Storr Services, including warehousing, logistics, installation, repair, and refurbishment. Before establishing TZG, Mike was an Executive Advisor to Blackstone (2011–2021) and served on the boards of Boeing (2004–2020), Stericycle (2012–2022), Apria Healthcare (2011–2022), Nortel (2006–2009), Motorola (2002–2005), and several other Blackstone portfolio companies.

During his corporate career, Mike served as President and/or CEO at Nortel, Motorola, and five GE businesses. Throughout 21+ years of full P&L leadership, revenue growth averaged over 8% annually, productivity gains exceeded 6% per year, and EBITDA margins improved by an average of 350 basis points per year. From 2006 to 2010, Mike was appointed by the President of the United States to serve on the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC), advising on matters related to telecommunications, information technology, cybersecurity, and national security.

Mike and Robin established The Zafirovski Family Foundation in 2005, focusing on education, healthcare, faith-based ministries, and economic development. A native of Macedonia, Mike is also the co-founder and director of Macedonia 2025, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the country’s economic growth and democratic development. Under its umbrella, and in partnership with Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, the Zafirovski Executive Development Program has helped prepare more than 100 future CEOs and senior executives.

Mike’s other philanthropic and civic engagements include serving on the Board of Directors of Special Olympics, the Coach K Leadership & Ethics Center Advisory Board (COLE), and the Council of Chief Executives (former Chairman). He is also a member of The CEO Forum, the American Enterprise Institute, and the Economic Club of Chicago. In 2009, he cofounded the Faith@Work Ministry at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Lake Forest, IL, and previously chaired AUSL, an organization focused on improving teacher quality and educational outcomes in Chicago’s turnaround public schools.

Mike holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Edinboro University, where he captained the soccer and swimming teams. He received an honorary doctorate in public service in 2002 and was inducted into the University’s Sports Hall of Fame. His honors include the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Leadership Award from the New York Hall of Science, the Medal of Honor from the President of Macedonia, the John L. Bitove Philanthropy Award, the Navy SEAL Foundation Patriot Award, AUSL’s Leadership Impact in Education Award. Married for 43 years, Mike and Robin have three married sons, all involved in The Zaf Group and its portfolio companies, and nine grandchildren.

His personal interests include family, mentoring, travel, and a lifelong love for endurance sports. He has completed nine Ironman races and fourteen marathons, including the California Ironman in 2024, where he won his age group and qualified for the World Championships. He is now beginning to devote more time to golf.

Professor Nikica Mojsoska-Blazevski is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Macedonia2025. Nikica's prior experience was in academia, where she served two terms as Dean of the Business School at University American College-Skopje, as well as in the public administration where she worked as a Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Republic of Macedonia.

Nikica has an extensive experience of over 15 years in research, consultancy and advisory in economic policies, social systems and policy, labour markets, and education in Macedonia, as well as the Western Balkan region. She has been working with major international economic organisations and institutions, such as the World Bank, ILO, RCC, UNDP, UN Women and the European Commission. Mojsoska-Blazevski is author of many journal articles and several book chapters, mainly in the area of social policy, labour markets, education, gender issues, youth, etc.

Nikica has served as an advisor to the government institutions in Macedonia and the Western Balkan region on economic, employment and social policy issues. Nikica is a member of several professional organizations in Macedonia, as well as of well-renowned international scientific organizations.