Ivailo Kalfin

Executive Director, Eurofound

Ivailo Kalfin joined Eurofound as Executive Director in June 2021. Mr Kalfin’s expertise covers a range of areas, from the dynamics of the labour market and social policy to global political trends, the EU and budget, as well as digital transformation.

Before taking up his post at Eurofund, he served as Director of the Economics and International Relations Institute starting 2019 in Sofia, focusing on research related to migration, labour market inclusion and the need for an updated social contract. Prior to this, he served as Bulgaria’s Deputy Prime Minister on two occasions (2005–2009 and 2014–2016), as well as Minister of Foreign Affairs (2005–2009) and Minister of Labour and Social Policy (2014–2016). Between 2009 and 2014, he was Member of the European Parliament, Vice Chair of the Committee on Budgets and rapporteur for the Multiannual Financial Framework 2014–2020. From 2014 to 2017, he was a member of the Monti Group – the High Level Group on Own Resources. For the next two years, he served as Special Adviser to the EU Commissioner on Budget and Human Resources. Mr Kalfin was elected as a member of the Bulgarian parliament on four occasions.

In his earlier career, he served as a member of the Advisory Board of the Bulgarian National Bank and as Economic Policy Secretary to the President of Bulgaria and was a lecturer in various universities. He also has experience of the business sector. Mr Kalfin holds MSc degrees in International Economic Relations and International Banking, acquired respectively at the UNWE in Sofia and Loughborough University, UK. He has an honorary doctorate from Loughborough University and the University of Ruse, Bulgaria.

Featured work