Experts

For almost 20 years, Klaudijus has been conducting research in the field of Europeanization, as well as advising public sector institutions on the improvement of public administration and strategic planning. Based on his academic research, he has prepared a dissertation, has published books (“EU Enlargement and Europeanization: The Accession of Central and Eastern European Countries to the European Union”, 2003; “Lithuania’s First Decade in the European Union: Transformation or Imitation?”, 2015) and more than 30 publications in international journals of political science. As an expert, Klaudijus is actively involved in international projects funded by the European Commission, related to the preparation of candidate countries for the EU membership and / or better implementation of their cooperation commitments with the EU. During Lithuanian accession to the EU, Klaudijus held a position of Deputy Chief Negotiator in Lithuania’s accession negotiations with the European Union and was Deputy Director General of the European Committee under the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Klaudijus actively participated in the process of Lithuania’s preparations for the Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2013: he prepared and conducted trainings for civil servants, advised the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other ministries on the issues of the Presidency agenda. Since 2009, Klaudijus is a member of the Public Administration Improvement Commission (Sunset Commission). In 2010-2015, Klaudijus participated in the development and improvement of the most important recent results-oriented management solutions in Lithuania: program evaluation, functional review, regulatory  impact assessment, performance evaluation.

Key competencies: EU affairs coordination; Implementation of the European Neighbourhood Policy; Improving public administration; Evaluation of public policies and programs; Strategic planning and programming; Strengthening administrative capacity.

Education: PhD in Social Sciences.

Languages: Lithuanian (native), English, Russian, French.

Since 2004, Agnė carries out impact assessments of public policy and programs financed by the EU Structural Funds, socio-economic research, and has excellent knowledge of impact assessment methodology. Since 2005, Agnė contributes to the strengthening of the evaluation capacity of the EU investments in Lithuania: for the Ministry of Finance she prepares methodological documents, organizes trainings for the responsible institutions and organizes international evaluation conferences. Since 2015, Agnė is a national expert in the Evaluation Helpdesk set up by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Regional Policy, which aims to provide methodological assistance to the European Commission on evaluations of the use of EU Structural Funds in EU countries.

Key competencies: Evaluation of public policies and programs (since 2004); Strengthening evaluation capacity, preparation of methodological documents (since 2005); Improving public administration and strengthening administrative capacity (since 2005); Quantitative and qualitative research methods, statistical analysis, econometric modelling, cost-benefit analysis, and other.

Education: Master’s degree in Political Science (European Studies). Certificate of completion of the management accounting course integrated into the master’s degree in management.

Languages: Lithuanian (native), English, French, Russian.

Neringa has excellent knowledge of strategic planning, public management, regional policy, investment planning, administration and evaluation of EU funds. She has working experience in the European Commission and Lithuanian public sector institutions at the national, regional and local levels. Since 2009, Neringa conducted more than 20 evaluations and studies in various areas of public policy (regional policy, urban development, rural development, culture, waste management, health, public administration, and other). Neringa has experience in providing consultations to public sector institutions in Lithuania and abroad on the implementation of various management improvement instruments (program evaluation, functional analysis, development and improvement of performance evaluation systems). Neringa is able to apply complex qualitative and quantitative research methods, such as econometric modelling, counterfactual analysis, etc., to assess the impact of public policies and programs.

Key competencies: Evaluation of public policies and programs (since 2006); Strengthening evaluation capacity, preparation of methodological documents (since 2006); Development and improvement of monitoring indicator systems (since 2003); Strategic planning and programming (since 2003); Improving public administration and strengthening administrative capacity (since 2009); Analysis of functions and processes of public sector institutions (since 2010); Quantitative and qualitative research methods, especially counterfactual analysis, statistical analysis, econometric modelling, etc.

Education: Master’s degree in Business Administration and Management (European Integration Studies).

Languages: Lithuanian (native), English, German, Russian.

Renata has experience in managing and coordinating EU and other donor-funded European integration technical assistance projects in the EU’s neighbourhood, she participated in the implementation of international technical assistance projects in Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. At ESTEP, she is also responsible for the development and implementation of training projects in Lithuania and other countries – assessment of training needs, training methodology, preparation of training programs, organization of training, assessment of training quality, as well as preparation of conferences, seminars, study visits for civil servants.

Key competencies: Coordination of bilateral development and aid projects (since 2005); Preparation and coordination of conferences, study visits (since 2005); Coordination of training for civil servants on EU related issues (representation of Lithuanian interests in EU institutions, coordination of EU affairs, preparation for the Presidency of the EU Council, management of EU structural assistance) (since 2011); Studies on the transposition of EU law into national law, analysis of legal regulations (since 2005); Evaluation of financial instruments financed from EU structural funds (since 2010).

Education: Master of Laws.

Languages: Lithuanian (native), English, French, Russian, Italian.

In 2018, Ingrida was graduated with a master’s degree in public policy analysis from Vilnius University. In the academic field, she specialized in the regulation of labour relations, social welfare policy and migration issues. During his studies, she did an internship at the University of Valencia, an internship at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania, and volunteered at the Lithuanian branch of Transparency International.

Key competencies: evaluation of the implementation of programs financed by the EU structural funds. Methods applied: interviews, analysis of documents / secondary sources, case studies.

Education: Master of Political Science (public policy analysis studies), Vilnius University.

Languages: Lithuanian (native), English, Spanish.

Ieva is proficient in strategic planning, public administration, investment planning and monitoring of EU funds. She has many years of working experience in planning and implementing EU cohesion policy in Lithuania, as well as work in Lithuanian public sector. Ieva is well acquainted with the theory and practice of LEAN methodology in improving processes.

Key competencies: Preparation and implementation of projects financed by the EU Structural Funds (since 2004); Strategic planning and programming (since 2004); Development and improvement of programme and projects’ monitoring systems (since 2012); LEAN implementation (since 2016); Evaluation of public policies and programs (since 2021); Qualitative and quantitative research methods: interviews, analysis of documents / secondary sources, case studies, statistical analysis, cost-benefit analysis.

Education: Bachelor of Political Science and Master of Communication (international communication studies), internship at Lund University.

Languages: Lithuanian (native), English, French.

Ilona is responsible for the company’s accounting and finance management. She has more than 15 years of working experience as an accountant / financier. Ilona is constantly improving her qualifications to ensure that accounting is carried out in accordance with relevant legislation and standards.

Education: Higher non-university education (accounting and finance).

Languages: Lithuanian (native), German, Russian.