Jelena Dragas

Head of Digitaloffensive Österreich, an economic initiative at the intersection of digitalization, technology, business, and politics. Responsible for the strategic and operational further development of the initiative as well as its positioning towards politics, administration, companies, research, and the public. My responsibilities included advising the executive board and member companies on digital policy, regulatory, and strategic issues, developing new thematic focuses, and expanding the corporate and stakeholder network. I analyzed political, regulatory, and technological developments and derived positions, recommendations for action, briefings, and communication measures from them. Thematic focuses included Artificial Intelligence, data policy, cloud, cybersecurity, e-health, energy, quantum computing, and high-performance computing. Furthermore, I was responsible for the preparation and support of high-level discussions with political decision-makers, ministries, institutions, companies, and research facilities. I initiated strategic partnerships, conceptualized specialist events, working groups, and dialogue formats, and represented the initiative towards relevant stakeholders. Other areas of responsibility included managing internal processes, budget planning, strategic communication, media relations, and leading a two-person team. A special focus was on the further development and expansion of the member network. In this context, I was able to win SAP as the first new member for Digitaloffensive Österreich in several years.

Strategic consulting for national and international companies at the intersection of business, politics, regulation, and communication. • Development and implementation of public affairs and positioning strategies • Consulting for management, executive boards, and C-level executives on political, regulatory, and reputation-related issues • Analysis of political and economic developments in Austria, Germany, and at the EU level • Identification of relevant decision-makers and development of stakeholder mappings and relationship strategies • Building and maintaining contacts with politics, administration, associations, institutions, and business representatives • Preparation and support of high-level discussions with political and institutional stakeholders • Development of core messages, argumentation lines, briefings, position papers, and strategic communication formats • Political and societal positioning of companies and organizations • Management of complex client mandates and coordination of interdisciplinary project teams • Business development, conceptualization of new consulting services, and acquisition of new mandates. Thematic focuses included digitalization and technology, energy and transformation, trade, and health and pharmaceuticals.

I advise companies, associations, and management teams at the intersection of business, politics, and communication. The focus of my work is on how organizations become relevant where their economic, political, and regulatory frameworks are decided. To this end, I analyze political and economic developments, identify relevant stakeholders, and develop clear positioning, argumentation lines, and strategies for building robust relationships. I support my clients from strategic analysis to concrete implementation. This includes in particular the development of public affairs strategies, stakeholder mappings, political and regulatory environmental analyses, the preparation of discussions with decision-makers, and the development of core messages, position papers, and communication formats. Furthermore, I support companies in market entry, building strategic partnerships, and institutional positioning in Germany, Austria, and at the EU level. I work directly with management, executive boards, and responsible management teams and take on both clearly defined consulting projects and long-term mandates and interim tasks. My focus areas: • Strategic Advisory • Corporate and Public Affairs • Stakeholder Management • Government Relations • Political and regulatory environmental analysis • Strategic positioning • Strategic Communications • Market Entry • Association Management • Strategic Partnerships • Executive Advisory • Interim Management