It's time to meet the man who puts the JV in COO...John Varvarigos
What’s your role at HQ? I am the Chief Operating Officer.
How did you get to Elevate? Well, DB and I met about 14 years ago. I was recommended as the perfect person to help the Elevate business out as a consultant by a then colleague of mine. At the time DB was the only person in the office, and I would help out with any strategic issues on a quarterly basis. Then we started to grow Elevate and saw the first employee being brought on… from there, the rest is history, as they say.
What did you do before that? I ran a boutique Management Consulting business advising high growth companies.
Nickname? JV – very boring I know, but everyone has called me this my entire life.
On a side note, my family call me Yanni. Doug calls me Javier. I don't know why!
Do you have a hidden talent that no-one in the office knows? I can do close-up magic. Surprise!!!
I did 2 semesters of this! Wow, I’m feeling judged already….
If you had to sing one song at Karaoke? Fly Me to the Moon – Frank Sinatra. I am known for my smooth crooning voice. Although DB and I did get booed off a stage by a drag queen whilst singing this song…. I blame him.
Doppelganger? I had a guy one day come up and ask me “Excuse me, are you Jurgen Klopp?” So I suppose Jurgen. DB says Kyle Mooney from Saturday Night Live. I'll let you guys judge.
Favorite TV series? Frasier, Boston Legal, and Game of Thrones (until the last season)
Ideal holiday destination? The Greek Islands – I love the food, the water, and the completely relaxed attitude of the people there.
Favourite food and dish? This is an impossible question. So I will shortlist my top 3 in no particular order.
A) freshly foraged pine mushrooms fried quickly in a pan with white wine, finished with a spoon of Greek yoghurt, fresh herbs from the garden and some arugula, served with fresh bread toasted over an open fire
B) Quails and pork on a spit dressed with lemon, and olive oil, served with garden-grown and same day-picked Greek salad
C) Line caught snapper cooked over a bed of coals served with a fresh salad
That will do for now, but I could go on if you like…
What are you most excited about at Elevate at the moment? Firstly, I’m excited about the new territories we are going into. USA here we come! Secondly, I’m super excited about the opportunity of building an A team at Elevate HQ. We will be bringing more people on board over the next 12 months and can’t wait to have an even bigger team of A players that will help us change the education landscape globally.
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