Ciaran McGinley, Principal Director of the Controlling Office at the European Patent Office, joined the EPO as an examiner in 1982 and held a wide variety of positions beingclosely involved in a number of key strategic initiatives such as automation, the re-structuring of examination according to industrial sectors, epoline, research into the role ofpatents in the knowledge economy and Mastering the Workload. He holds a BSc in Aeronautical Engineering from the Bristol University in England and an MBA from the HEC-ISA in France.