Meet the DA-Desk team
The DA-Desk team is 373 strong and is located globally to serve our customers. Many of them with a background in maritime and shipping, the team has deep expertise in customer service, process management, IT, solutions development, integration, finance, management, business strategy, and innovation.
The Board
Chair of the Board
Jens Lorens Poulsen
Jens is co-founder of Marcura and Chair of the Board.
Previously, Jens was Group CEO for over ten years, focusing on the market, business models and service strategies of the portfolio companies.
Prior to that, Jens was a Senior Partner at Cultivator A/S, then one of Scandinavia’s leading Management Consultancies, where he provided management counsel to Engineering, Software and Pharmaceutical companies.
Earlier, he was involved in the initial launch of Cisco Systems, Inc. in all Scandinavian countries and was Financial Director at UNIRAS A/S, a pioneering scientific visualization software company with global customers. He has held a position as VP Finance for the Treasury of Hafnia, a major Scandinavian insurance group. He started his career with Andersen Consulting, now Accenture.
Group CEO
Henrik Hyldahn
Henrik is the Group CEO of Marcura and brings over 20 years of leadership experience in driving financial and personal growth through innovative technology solutions.
Previously, Henrik was the CEO of ShipServ, the world’s leading e-procurement platform for ship owners/managers, shipyards, and more than 73,000 marine industry suppliers.
Henrik has become best known for his innovative approach to solving complex industry challenges by developing simple, secure, sustainable solutions.
He has a strong track record of building and leading multicultural teams to ensure scalable value delivery through efficient use of technology and unleashing employee potential through mentorship while ensuring a wider purpose and growth plan for the entire team.
Founder
Christian Siemers Haunso
Christian is the founder of Marcura and Board member.
Previously, Christian worked in the Structured Commodity Finance Division at ING Barings in Amsterdam and Moscow, with the focus on the metals and shipping industries.
Prior to that he worked at a shipbroking and trading house in Hamburg where his duties covered operations, chartering and grain trading.
Earlier he worked in the shipping liner trade for Überseeschiffahrtsagentur Transnautic in Hamburg.
Christian holds a Master in Shipping, Trade and Finance from Cass Business School.
Board Director of Marcura
and Managing Director of Marlin Equity Partners
Jan-Olivier Fillols
Jan-Olivier’s primary responsibilities at Marlin include deal qualification, conducting due diligence, transaction execution and portfolio monitoring.
Prior to joining Marlin, he worked at 3i Group where he focused on private equity investments across a broad range of sectors and geographies.
Prior to this, he worked as an investment banker at Jefferies where he specialised in mergers and acquisitions and public market transactions.
Before his career in finance, Jan-Olivier held software development positions at diagnostics company Roche and telecoms provider Ascom. He earned an M.Sc. in Finance and Economics from the London School of Economics and an M.Sc. in Communication Systems from the Swiss Institute of Technology (EPFL).
DA-Desk Leadership Team
Chief Executive Officer
Dionysis Tzelepis
Dionysis is the CEO of DA-Desk and is responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with customers, whilst ensuring customers obtain optimal value from the DA-Desk service offering.
Dionysis joined DA-Desk in 2017 as Commercial Finance Manager and later became Director of PortPayables where his role was to manage and enhance DA-Desk’s payment processing solutions.
Prior to working with DA-Desk, Dionysis worked for more than ten years with Eletson Corporation in Piraeus, where he held the position of Treasury and Corporate Finance Manager. He was responsible for the banking relationships, treasury functions, and investor relationship management during this time.
Dionysis holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance from Athens University of Economics , and has a Master in Finance from Henley Business School at Reading University. He is a Scholar at the Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation
EVP, Customer Success, DA-Desk & Claims Hub
Duncan Bruce
Duncan joined DA-Desk in 2012 and has more than 16 years’ experience within the shipping industry, both at sea and ashore.
He has sailed on a variety of vessels including LNG, LPG, Product and VLCCs.
He has held management positions ashore for shipping lines with previous roles including Head of Hub Port Management for Asia Pacific and Cargo Operations Manager for Africa, both with Maersk Line.
Duncan has global shipping experience having worked in the UK, South Africa, Denmark, Singapore and Hong Kong, where he held a commercial management position in CSAV Norasia. Duncan has a BA (Hons) Degree from the University of Sunderland.
Director of Process Excellence, DA-Desk
Alexander Tarasenko
Alexander Tarasenko has been with Marcura since 2011, initially as Business Development Manager. He transitioned to DataFactory, a new group business unit where he played a key role in launching and managing it.
He is currently Director of Process Excellence for DA-Desk continuously working on improvements towards processes and service delivery.
Prior to DA-Desk, Alex worked with Maersk Line for 7 years both as Finland and Baltics Operations General manager and Russia Cluster Process Excellence manager.
SVP of Financial Services,
PortPayables, UAE
Bruce Kuiper
Bruce joined DA-Desk in December 2016 as Commercial Manager of PortPayables, and is responsible for commercial contact with customers, the onboarding of new customers and ensuring the smooth and efficient running of PortPayables.
Previously, Bruce worked with Ernst & Young and prior to joining DA-Desk, he was a Financial Director for a mining company operating across East Africa.
Bruce has a degree in commerce from Stellenbosch University in South Africa, and is a qualified chartered accountant.
Chief Product Officer
George Tsougkranis
George joined DA-Desk in 2022, helping to drive exciting new initiatives to increase the value our customers enjoy from our service.
Having worked as an advisor with many private and public sector institutions in Greece, UAE and KSA, George has a demonstrated track record of digital and business transformations across a variety of industries and domains, always building strong relationships with clients and delivering tangible value for their business. As a system integration enthusiast and with a strong technical background, he is constantly looking for new ways to leverage technology in order to optimise business processes, expand the service portfolio and improve the customer experience.
George holds an Integrated Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens, Greece and a Masters Degree in Business and Information Technology with Distinction from Aston Business School in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
SVP Sales
Piers Yea
Piers is an accomplished commercial leader with a distinctive background in guiding commercial, data, and product teams in the maritime sector.
As the current Senior Vice President of Sales at Marcura, he contributes over two decades of expertise to the organization.
Before joining Marcura in 2018, Piers dedicated over 8 years to Inchcape Shipping Services, where he played a pivotal role in establishing and expanding their ‘Information Services’ business.
His wealth of experience and leadership acumen has consistently positioned him as a valuable asset in driving strategic initiatives and fostering business growth.
Compliance Officer
Sarah Elstob
Sarah is the Compliance Officer for DA-Desk and is responsible for mitigating sanctions-related risks in relations to DA-Desk Customers and their counterparties, and the onboarding of new agents, vendors and PortPayables customers.
Sarah joined DA-Desk in November 2021 as a Commercial Finance Manager where she was responsible for commercial contact with customers, the onboarding of new customers and ensuring the smooth and efficient running of PortPayables.
Prior to joining DA-Desk, Sarah managed a team at Absa Bank Limited in South Africa responsible for the onboarding of international institutional and corporate clients for the corporate and investment bank division.
Sarah has a degree in commerce from Stellenbosch University and an MBA with distinction from the Gordon Institute of Business Science, both in South Africa; and is a Certified Anti-money Laundering Specialist through ACAMs.
Business Development Team
Commercial Director
Mark Franklin
Mark joined DA-Desk in 2007 and is currently Commercial Director. Mark has 30 years’ experience in the shipping industry, working in the UK, Switzerland, France and the UAE.
Prior to DA-Desk, he was an operations manager at Mediterranean Shipping Company in Geneva, working in vessel operations and on the acquisition and development of container terminals.
Prior to this Mark worked as an operator and in planning cargo stowage with Norasia, OT Africa Line and CMA-CGM. He also worked in a commercial management role and in port operations at Thamesport in the UK.
Mark has a shipping-related MBA from Middlesex University.
Management Team
Regional Customer Manager,
Japan
Takashi Ikeda
Takashi joined DA-Desk as Account Manager in 2009 and is responsible for managing DA-Desk’s growing Japanese customer base.
Prior to joining DA-Desk, he was an extensive user of the DA-Desk web application while an Operator/Manager at a Japanese shipping company doing tramping business worldwide.
A 20-year veteran of the shipping industry, Ikeda-san also worked at a number of tramp shipping companies in Japan.
He graduated from Aoyama Gakuin University of Japan, and holds a Bachelor of Economics degree.
Key Account Manager,
UK
Zoe Kent
Zoe joined Marcura in summer 2022 as a Key Account Manager for DA-Desk’s Europe Operations.
Zoe is based in London, UK and supports existing, new, and future customers across Europe.
Zoe has worked in the shipping industry for the last 8 years in the tanker sector covering worldwide operations and chartering positions.
Zoe started her career in a VLCC/Suezmax brokerage company, before moving to a trading house where she worked with Chemical Tankers and Barges.
Zoe is a member of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.
Key Account Manager,
UK
Helen Trundle
Helen joined Marcura in 2021 as a Key Account Manager. Based in the UK, Helen supports our existing, new and future customers across Europe.
Helen has worked in the shipping industry since 2001 and is an experienced IT management professional with a strong background in freight trading, IT transformations and maritime application developments.
Prior to joining Marcura Helen was a manager at Maritech (Sea) and was responsible for providing support services for a suite of applications used by key players within the shipping and offshore industries.
Helen has a BSc in Maritime Studies from University of Wales, Cardiff and is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers (ICS).
Key Account Manager,
UAE
Tom Watson
Tom joined the company in 2012 and has 18 years varied shipping experience including nearly a decade in port operations and a similar amount of years in vessel management and logistics, working on vessel stowage, scheduling and port and services contract negotiations.
He has worked for some of the world’s largest and most diverse shipping corporations such as CP Ships, K-Line and Hutchinson Port Holdings.
He holds a certification in the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Sea and Vessel Stability as well as a Diploma in Supervision and Management.
Key Account Manager,
UAE
Michael Oliver
Michael started with DA-Desk in 2012 and has 20 years of experience within the Crude, Clean Petroleum Product, Dry bulk and LNG sectors, most recently as a manager with Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG).
Michael graduated from the University of Northumbria and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.
General Manager, Greece
Miranda Karkala Kavalieratou
Miranda joined Marcura in 2016 as a Sales Manager, based in Greece, helping our existing and prospective customers transform their business with Marcura suite during the seaborne trade execution.
Miranda is based in Athens and supports existing, new and future customers in the region.
General Manager,
Group Agency Business Development,
Cyprus
Alex Garroch
Alex joined Marcura in 2021, where he is primarily responsible for Group Agency Business Development and is based in Cyprus and also supports clients locally.
Alex is a master mariner with 25 years of experience in the marine industry and 12 years of shore-based experience with multinational companies within the marine industry.
Most recently he was Product Delivery Manager for Hub Services for GAC, based in Dubai, responsible for building and maintaining networks with third-party ship managers and ship owners to provide global husbandry/agency service. It was here that Alex became familiar with DA-Desk’s services.
Prior to that, he worked as the Managing Director of GAC Transfer Services, which provided global ship-to-ship transfer services and mooring masters for various FSOs.
He also worked as a marine manager, STS Mooring master / POAC, STS Superintendent, and a mooring master in West Africa for ExxonMobil, as well as other sailing positions, including sailing on VLCCs and shuttle tankers.
Head of Customer Integration and Applications,
UAE
Masaki Kaneko
Masaki has been with DA-Desk since 2003, initially as Account Manager.
He transitioned to business analysis/ requirements for the software development side acting as a conduit between the business and the development team, building the DA-Desk application based on customer requirements.
He is also responsible for handling development requirements for DA-Desk data integration with Voyage Management Systems and other DA-Desk applications.
Prior to joining DA-Desk, he worked as interline manager at a liner shipping company in Miami.
Masaki holds a degree in mathematics from the Queen Mary University of London and a Master’s degree in Trade, Transport and Finance from Cass Business School, City, University of London.
Senior Commercial Manager – Financial Services,
PortPayables,
UAE
Janos Nagy
Janos joined DA-Desk in May 2019 as Commercial Manager of PortPayables.
Previously, he spent over 6 years with Thomson Reuters where he rose to the position of Account Director focusing on the company’s financial services and risk & compliance operations.
At PortPayables, he is responsible for developing and enhancing our customers’ DA-Desk journey from a commercial perspective and the smooth running of the department.
Janos obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management from the University of Keele in the UK.
Operations Team
Sector Manager – Bulk,
India
Balaji Nadar
Balaji joined DA-Desk in January 2005 and has worked with all aspects of the services provided to customers.
Over the years, he has been involved in operations, customer experience, onboarding management, key account management, all such roles that benefit him in his current role as Sector Manager.
Prior to joining DA-Desk, Balaji worked for a shipping agency in India, focusing also on disbursement accounting. Balaji holds a Bachelor’s degree in Science from Mumbai University.
Sector Manager,
Philippines
Eric Fernandez
A seasoned maritime professional, joined the group on March 2020 and is currently heading the DA-Desk team in Manila.
With nearly two decades of sailing experience and was also a maritime educator and trainer. He had his bachelor’s degree in marine transportation from the Philippine Merchant Marine School.
Part of his experience includes Pioneering the establishment of Klaveness commercial operations in Manila as their very first Filipino Ship operator.
Sector Manager – Bulk,
India
Manjunath Shivaram
Manjunath joined DA-Desk in 2006 and has worked as a team leader providing services to project customers, including operations and customer experience. Now he provides services in his current role as the sector manager of the bulk sector.
He has a diploma in Electronics Engineering. Before joining DA-Desk, Manjunath worked in the shipping agency department for almost 12 years.
Head of Sector – Tankers,
UAE
Ruchir Mankodi
Ruchir has worked with DA-Desk first from 2004 to 2011 as Assistant Operations Manager, and returned to serve DA-Desk customers as Account Manager in April 2016.
Ruchir is focused on and responsible for continuous system and process efficiency improvements.
Previously, Ruchir worked at the Offshore Oil Terminal, Kandla Port Trust, in India.
In 2008, Ruchir completed the Professional Qualifying Examinations for the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers in 2008.
Sector Manager – Tankers,
UAE
Sarvotham Bhandary
Sarvotham Bhandary joined DA-Desk in 2006 as a knowledge worker and has risen through the ranks to become Account Manager and manages some of DA-Desk customers.
Prior to working with DA-Desk, Sarvotham spent 10 years with a leading Indian Shipping Agency.
Sarvotham holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Mangalore University and is currently pursuing the qualified membership of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.
Sector Manager – Tankers,
India
Peter J. D’Souza
Peter joined DA-Desk in 2004 and has worked with all aspects of the services provided to customers including operations and customer experience, all which benefit him in his current role as the Sector Manager.
Peter holds a Master of Commerce degree from Pune University.
Before joining DA-Desk, Peter worked for P&O Nedlloyd in India and was part of the team involved in transferring processes from Europe and US front offices to their India office.
Head of Sector – Chemical
Pallavi Ahuja
Pallavi joined DA-Desk in 2011 and has created substantial impact across departments in Marcura including operations, customer experience, as well as HR.
Pallavi is currently playing a dual role within Marcura. She heads operations for the chemical sector, leading a team of 20+ people. Additionally, she manages the customer experience division which caters to more than 350 customers across sectors.
In her previous role within Marcura, Pallavi was instrumental in building up our India office from scratch, where she managed the migration of 80+ employees from Dubai to Mumbai, and grew the team to 250 employees over 2 years.
Prior to joining Marcura, Pallavi led business development efforts for technology companies like Aricent and travel companies like Thomas Cook and Make My Trip.
Pallavi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology (Gold Medalist) and a Master’s Degree in Tourism Management (Gold Medalist) from Delhi University.
Head of Sector – Project
UAE
Andrea McLeod
Andrea joined DA-Desk from university in a graduate trainee program.
Since 2002, she has progressed through various departments and roles in DA-Desk, such as Onboarding Manager in 2014 where she was responsible for on-boarding, training and lead-in of new key customers.
In 2017, she moved to an Account Manager role, responsible for customer relationship management and was the first point of contact for customers’ senior management. Since 2021, she moved to Operations and currently heads the Project Sector.
Andrea holds a Bachelor of Business Management degree from Bangalore University and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.
Request your demo
If you’d like an initial chat with a solutions specialist then please complete the contact form.
If you’re not ready for that yet, you can watch our demo video here.
Many thanks
If you are a Shipping Agent, please don’t use this form. Email arm@da-desk.com and they will be able to assist you quickly.
