Operator 05 · Strategy Practice
John Hunter
Partner · Strategy Practice · ex‑CIO, Council of Europe
- 30+ Yr leading IT at European institutions
- 3,500+ Users across Europe
"AI earns its place in an institution the day it passes the audit, not the demo."Operating principle · 2026
In his own words, in our voice
The operator who ran IT at the European Court of Human Rights.
30+ years leading IT inside European institutions. Head of IT at the European Audiovisual Observatory from 1993 to 1996 and at the European Court of Human Rights from 1996 to 2017, then CIO of the Council of Europe · IT strategy, cybersecurity, AI governance and digital services for 3,500+ users across Europe.
At the Court, John led the systems its operations depend on: HUDOC and CMIS, alongside ECM. They improved efficiency and reduced the case backlog. He also coordinated the integration of the Court's information system with that of the Council of Europe.
In 2023, he launched the Council of Europe's organization-wide AI program, Data-Driven Future: AI Innovation for the Council of Europe. Inside Hikari Blue, John is a partner of the Strategy Practice. He brings to mid-market and enterprise clients what he ran inside the institution: AI governance, security, budgets and team training.
Before the institutions, he was Managing Director of MovieBase Ltd from 1991 to 1993 and led the development and international rollout of its rights management software. He has advised judicial and governmental bodies across Europe: the United Nations in Bosnia, the French Cour des comptes, the UK Foreign Office and DTI, the Supreme Courts of the Netherlands, Russia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Turkish Ministry of Justice, the Croatian Justice Department, the Irish Foreign Office and Court Service Ireland. Bilingual in English and French.
Inside Hikari Blue
What John carries.
The Strategy Practice is where an AI program is decided, governed and funded before it is built. John is a named partner of the Practice, with Franck Ohrel, accountable for security, sovereignty, governance and compliance.
- AI governance and AI programs · the Council of Europe's organization-wide AI program, launched in 2023.
- IT strategy and transformation · short- and long-term strategies, large-scale system transitions such as HUDOC and CMIS.
- Security and policy · security of IT and telecom systems, data protection, outsourcing policies.
- Budgets and teams · budgets planned and monitored, investment projects, international teams trained and mentored.
Direct contact
Bring the AI program that has to pass an audit. Leave with a plan built for it.
Describe the workflow and its principal constraint. A named senior partner replies quickly, in writing. If the brief fits, the next step is an Operating Assessment: 1 week, from $18,000.
Ask Hikari helps you frame the problem and proposes a first move. From the overlay, you can send the brief to a named partner with your name and work email.