The Commission's new Secretary General-designate, David O'Sullivan, has enjoyed a meteoric rise through the ranks of the organisation since he joined it in 1979.
The son of a former chief-of-staff of the Defence Forces, Lieut. Gen. Gerry O'Sullivan, and Mrs Phil O'Sullivan, he was educated at St Mary's College, Rathmines, and Trinity College Dublin, where he was a gold medal debater and auditor of the College Historical Society.
He attended the College of Europe in Bruges, then worked for the Department of Foreign Affairs, before joining the Commission.
His experience since then has included periods in external relations; on the EU's delegation to Japan; in Mr Peter Sutherland's cabinet working on relations with the European Parliament; in DGXXII from 1989-1993 running programmes on university-industry co-operation and higher education co-operation with central and eastern Europe; as deputy chef in Padraig Flynn's cabinet; and two years as a senior official in the social affairs directorate, managing the European Social Fund and then budgets and personnel.
In January last year he succeeded Dr Tom O'Dwyer as head of DGXXII, education, under the then commissioner, Edith Cresson, and within months was asked by the new President to head his cabinet.
He is married to an architect, Agnes O'Hare, and they have two children.