Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer

The Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer has several core functions: serving the offices of the mayor and Chief Executive Officer, supporting the mayor's priority initiatives, overseeing coordination within the administration, managing projects citywide, and coordinating policy development for Reykjavík City.  

Purpose

The Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer has two teams:

  • Service & Administration Team: Providing services and support for the mayor as director and the City's lead public representative. This includes responsibility for general services to the mayor and managing their schedule, preparing items for the City Executive Council and other specialized councils of Reykjavík City, and handling matters assigned to the office in those forums.
  • Policy & Development Team: Supporting the advancement of the mayor's priority initiatives, participating in projects that require development, policy making or coordination, and overseeing international research and innovation projects. Leading policy making coordination within Reykjavík City and overseeing the implementation of the Green Deal, Public Health Policy, Economic & Innovation Policy, and international policy.

Reykjavík City's Data Protection Officer is part of the Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer. The data protection officer has a coordinating role and is responsible for monitoring compliance with data protection policy in accordance with Act No. 90/2018 on Data Protection and Processing of Personal Data.

The office's values are professionalism, service and collaboration.

The office's guiding principle: We are progressive, provide reliable services and handle our projects with professionalism.

Mayor

The mayor of Reykjavík is the City’s chief of staff. The mayor has three main roles.

The mayor is the managing director of the City of Reykjavík, the City’s representative in the public sphere, and the political leader of the majority.

More about the mayor

Chief Executive Officer

The chief executive officer is the highest ranked official in Reykjavik, except for the mayor, and is one of the mayor’s substitutes.

The Chief Executive Officer oversees the Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer, the communications and events office, and the human rights office.

More about the chief executive officer

Staff

Þorsteinn Gunnarsson – Chief Executive Officer.
As the highest-ranking official in Reykjavík City after the mayor, the Chief Executive Officer serves as one of the mayor's deputies. The Chief Executive Officer oversees the Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer, the communications and events office, and the human rights office. The Chief Executive Officer serves as Reykjavík City's liaison with regional partnerships and Section B – Autonomous Entities.

Hilmar Ingi Jónsson – data protection officer.
The Data protection officer collaborates with managers and specialists on data protection matters and leads a team of experts in data protection and personal data processing for Reykjavík City. 

Kolbrún Birna Hallgríms. Bachmann – data protection specialist, lawyer, and deputy data protection officer.
Handles data protection matters and provides advice on personal data processing within Reykjavík City.

Service & Administration Team

Tinna Garðarsdóttir – team leader. Manages
the daily operations of the team. Responsible for handling administrative inquiries and items for the City Executive Council and other City councils.  Coordinating and overseeing projects related to the mayor's schedule. Staff member of Reykjavík City Emergency Management.

Aldrianne Karen Roman – Administrative assistant.
Provides general support to the mayor and other office staff, including answering calls. Providing support for meetings, including handling documentation and preparing travel authorizations.

Anna Karen Kristinsdóttir – receptionist.
Plans, coordinates, and supports receptions, conferences, meetings, and visits. Manages tours in Reykjavík City Hall and Höfði.

Hildur María Haarde – administrative affairs project manager.
Processes and follows up on administrative matters. Oversees the preparation and processing of cases for the City Executive Council. Also conducts data collection and writes comments and proposals for City Executive Council and other Reykjavik City councils.

Rebekka Sigurðardóttir – scheduling
coordinator. Supports the mayor and manages the mayor's daily schedule. Organizes and supervises the various events and projects in which the Mayor participates domstically and abroad. 

Sandra Dröfn Gylfadóttir – lawyer. Provides
legal advice and drafts and manages the office's contracts. Following up on projects and implementing suggestions from internal and external auditors. Conducts case processing for the City Executive Council along with administrative delegation.

Sindri Freyr Ásgeirsson – project manager.
Prepares and follows up on projects within the Office of the Mayor and Chief Executive Officer. Participating in priority and development projects and assisting with various administrative projects of the office.

Þórir Kjartansson – mayor's chauffeur.
Operates and maintains the vehicle and drives the mayor as needed. Also drives out personal deliveries and other messages inside and outside the City administration. 

Policy and development team

Edda Björk Ragnarsdóttir – team leader. Oversees
the team's day-to-day operations. Supporting the advancement of the mayor's priority initiatives, participating in projects that require development, policy making or coordination, and overseeing international research and innovation projects. 

Kamma Thordarson – project manager.
Directs policy-making and development projects. Collaborates with Business Iceland on international marketing of Vatnsmýri under Reykjavik Science City brand. Supporting innovation in the city through collaboration with various parties. Administering various working groups.

Jón Halldór Jónasson – project manager.
Manages policy-related work, including overseeing the Green Deal, Reykjavík City's overarching strategy. | View terms of reference | View the Green Deal website.  Participates in various Economic & Innovation Policy projects and serves as liaison to the innovation community | See Innovation in Reykjavík.  Participates
in or leads various mayoral priority initiatives and other special projects. Also supports communication efforts around projects handled by the policy and development team. 

Harpa Þorsteinsdóttir – project manager for public health and international affairs. Develops, implements, and coordinates projects in public health and international affairs. This includes responsibility for implementing Reykjavík City's Public Health Policy and its action plan, providing official statements and assessments on the feasibility of participating in various international initiatives, and managing communication with embassies and other representatives of foreign countries.

Kristín Þorleifsdóttir, Ph. D. – project manager for international research and innovation projects.
Leads the strategic plan to increase Reykjavík City's participation in international research and innovation projects, focusing on European Union funding programs like Horizon and LIFE. Supports and manages various other international grant applications that align with Reykjavík City's international policy.  View web page on research and urban development. 

Hannah Rós Sigurðardóttir Tobin – AMIGOS project manager. Manages the Icelandic component of the international research and innovation project AMIGOS (
AMIGOS | Reykjavik), which addresses changes at Hlemmur to improve traffic safety in the area.