Mark has recruited many senior communication, public affairs and association leaders in Brussels and around Europe over the last decade through Dober Partners since 2010. He has worked with over 100 European association leaders, right up to the President of BUSINESSEUROPE and DG of the European Roundtable of Industry. He has also worked with major corporations such as: LVMH, Europe´s largest company by market cap; MSC the world´s largest shipping company; and FedEx the world´s leading express carrier.

He was formerly APCO’s first employee in Europe and set up their Brussels office in 1995, acting as Managing Director in various roles until 2010. Mark was involved with recruiting many key positions around Europe for APCO Worldwide and its clients during 16 years of rapid growth at the company. Prior to APCO, he joined the London office of Hill & Knowlton and left its Brussels office as Associate Director.

Mark has twice been voted ‘European Consultant of the Year’ by ‘Public Affairs News’ and members of ‘The European Public Affairs Directory’. He has authored numerous reports on public affairs and communications including ‘Key Success Factors for European Associations’, ‘EU Media Relations’, ‘High Performance Secretariats’, ‘European Association Remuneration’ and ‘European Corporate Affairs Remuneration’.

Mark has taught semesters for Masters in Strategic Communications at Brussels IHECS University, and has been an occasional lecturer with a number of Universities including Maastricht. He has a Masters in Political Science from the PUC University of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Mark speaks English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

Natalia is Managing Partner of Dober Partners, which she joined in 2013. She leads senior-level appointments in two areas: legal roles for law firms, and government relations and public policy roles for global corporates, European trade associations, and consultancies specialising in EU affairs.

Natalia has been based in Brussels since 2008. Before moving into executive search, she held senior positions at a number of European trade associations, including DIGITALEUROPE, IAB Europe and eu travel tech (formerly ETTSA).

Australian-born, of Polish and Ukrainian descent, Natalia began her career with the BBC. She speaks English, French and Spanish.

Principal, Legal Recruitment Practice

Steve Meier is one of the most respected and established names in the Brussels legal recruitment market, having advised international law firms and lawyers on appointments and career moves for more than two decades.

A lawyer by training, Steve brings a deeply informed perspective to legal recruitment.  He understands law firms not simply as a recruiter, but from having worked inside them and practised law across several jurisdictions.  This combination of legal experience and deep knowledge of the Brussels market has shaped an approach built on discretion, sound judgement and highly selective introductions.

Steve began his career in law after completing his undergraduate and legal studies in Texas.  After qualifying to the Texas Bar, he returned to Europe to undertake postgraduate legal studies at the Université Libre de Bruxelles from where he obtained his Licence spéciale (Ll.M.).

His legal career subsequently took him through private practice in Brussels, including with De Bandt, Van Hecke, Lagae & Van Bael  (now Linklaters) and Van Bael & Bellis, followed by experience in Geneva and in Paris with Donovan Leisure Newton & Irvine.  He later returned to the United States, where he worked principally on antitrust and complex litigation matters before eventually making Brussels his permanent professional home.

Steve moved into legal recruitment in 2005 with Laurence Simons (https://laurencesimons.com/), identifying early the need for a more specialist approach to recruiting lawyers into the Brussels market.  In 2008 he established Steven Meier Specialist Recruitment through which he built a substantial practice advising law firms and lawyers, particularly across competition, trade and regulatory practices.

His approach has always been deliberately selective.  Rather than treating recruitment as a volume business, Steve invests time in understanding the lawyer, the firm, the practice and the circumstances behind a potential move before making an introduction.  Over many years this has given him close relationships across the Brussels legal community and a detailed understanding of individual firms, their practices, cultures and hiring priorities.

After stepping back from full-time recruitment during the pandemic, Steve continued to advise on selected appointments.  He has now joined Dober Partners as Principal of its Legal Recruitment Practice, marking the firm’s expansion into specialist legal recruitment.

Steve’s arrival brings together his longstanding relationships and knowledge of the Brussels legal profession with Dober Partners’ established search methodology and European network.  The practice will advise international law firms in Belgium on strategic legal hiring while providing lawyers with informed and confidential advice on career moves within one of Europe’s most specialised legal markets.

Nadine Heikamp is a Partner with Dober Partners. She brings over 15 years of international experience across recruitment, communications and public affairs. Nadine spent seven years with APCO Worldwide in Brussels, Athens and Dubai, latterly as Associate Director, developing strategic communication and public affairs campaigns for clients. She was subsequently Communications and Parent Relations Officer for Taaleem Education in Dubai, and then spent five years as a communications consultant in Athens. Recently managed the International Education department at the German American Institute in Heidelberg, leading a team of ten. Nadine holds a Master’s degree from IHECS Haute École Galilée in Brussels and a BA from Middlesex University in London, and has guest lectured on IHECS’s MA in Communication. She speaks German, English, French and Dutch fluently, as well as Greek and Italian.

Michele joined the Dober Partners team in 2020 to focus on association leadership and corporate affairs recruitment. Michele is an EU funding and public affairs specialist based between Rome and Brussels with fifteen years of experience working with clients from various sectors. Since 2010 he works at Schuman Associates on the implementation of funding strategies and market assessments as well as public affairs and advocacy campaigns. Prior to this he worked in the international division of a large Italian IT company managing international projects as well as developing new partnerships.

Michele has a BA in Political Science from John Cabot University in Rome and a graduate certificate in International Relations from Boston University. Michele speaks, English, Italian and French.

Stefan Borst,  Senior Adviser, complements our team of senior public affairs professionals, and adds capability and networks particularly in Germany and on energy policy which is his specialism. He has worked with us recently for a number of our clients including the European Heat Pump Association and a major international energy company.   Stefan was previously Head of Energy and Industrials EMEA at the global Public Relations firm Edelman. Prior to Edelman, Stefan founded and led a boutique consultancy based in Berlin and Brussels advising international corporations on European affairs. For over a decade he also represented the Board of Management of the global specialty chemicals company Lanxess towards the European Institutions and within trade bodies like CEFIC and the German BDI.  Stefan started his career as a business journalist and later EU correspondent for the German weekly FOCUS. He has a degree in law from the University of Regensburg in Germany.

Sabina Ciofu is a Senior Adviser to Dober Partners. Sabina is an international technology policy and geopolitical strategist with more than 15 years of experience working across government, industry and global affairs.

She leads International Policy and Strategy at techUK, the UK technology sector’s trade association, where she advises companies ranging from startups to global technology firms on digital trade, AI, economic security, technology regulation, market access and international growth. Her work spans Europe, North America, the Indo-Pacific and the Middle East, and she regularly engages with governments, regulators, industry leaders and international organisations on the policy and geopolitical developments shaping the global technology sector.

Prior to joining techUK, Sabina spent almost a decade advising a Member of the European Parliament on technology policy, international trade and transatlantic relations. Today, she is a recognised voice on international technology policy and a frequent speaker at conferences and policy forums across Europe and beyond.

A committed community builder, Sabina founded the Old Professionals in Digital Policy and the Women in Tech Policy network, bringing together policymakers, business leaders, academics and emerging talent from across the technology ecosystem. She also serves on the advisory boards of the UCL European Institute, Café Transatlantique and The Nine in Brussels.

Sabina holds degrees from King’s College London and the University of Cambridge and is a Marshall Memorial Fellow of the German Marshall Fund.

Brian Ager is a Senior Adviser with Dober Partners. He previously served as the Secretary General of the European Round Table of Industrialists, a forum bringing together CEOs and Chairmen of major European multinationals from 2011 until 2019. He was previously the Director General of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) from 1995 to 2011. He also served as Secretary General of EuropaBio the leading biotech association from 1990 until 1995. He first came to Brussels as an Expert National Détaché with the European Commission. Educated at Essex University, Brian speaks English and French.

Christophe is a Senior Adviser providing particular support in Switzerland, France and Brussels. He also serves as the Executive Director of the European Centre for Public Affairs and is Founder of CLC Consultant. Christophe’s career highlights include heading up European Government Relations for McDonald’s and managing International Communications & Public Affairs for Yum! brands (KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell) across 100 countries. As a consultant with Leidar in Geneva, Fleishman-Hillard in Brussels and Golin/Harris in London, he had the opportunity to work in multiple sectors and industries. He also enjoyed his stint in the NGO world as Head of Corporate Communications at the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) in Geneva.

Christophe started his career as an expert at the European Parliament. He is a French national and holds Master’s degrees in Political Science and International Affairs. Christophe spends his time between Geneva and Brussels. He also regularly lectures at the Graduate Institute in Geneva on international advocacy.

Frédéric is a financial, technology and legal expert with particular experience in helping trade associations and not-for-profit organisations. Frédéric joined the Dober Partners team in 2020 but has worked closely with team members previously. Since 2012 Frédéric has fulfilled the legal, tax and annual account obligations for EUFIC, the European Food Information Council. Prior to EUFIC he worked for DIGITALEUROPE and a number of other sector groups in the energy field.

Frédéric has a BSc in Accounting from the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (EPHEC – Brussels) and studied tax law and IT. Frédéric’s accounting, legal and IT skills have helped association leaders make the right decisions, at the right time. Frédéric speaks English and French.

Sam “The Doberman” is part-time receptionist and a key member of the Dober Partners team since 2021.

A cheerful little chap, he is often seen at our Brussels head office or doing odd jobs in the EU Quarter.