Pouliou's military career began in 2007 when she joined the Air Force Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO) Academy in Greece.
She then went on to work for the Hellenic Air Force 110 Combat Wing in Larissa as a Telecommunications and Electronics Technician, where she calibrated and repaired electronic devices.
In addition to teaching at the Academy, she is responsible for supporting other Greek national personnel working in Lisbon, Portugal.
Her distinguished career has allowed her to work alongside high-ranking officials in the Hellenic Armed Forces.
We recently spoke to Pouliou about her career and her role as an AirC2 Instructor.
What drew you to a career in NATO?
Of course, I had extrinsic motivations that inspired me to start thinking about applying for a job in NATO, such as the multicultural work environment and the benefits! Mostly, I wanted to challenge myself so I decided to dare to go for this big job and pursue my dreams. I knew this was a unique experience and since I had this chance, I said to myself, "you have to seize this opportunity". To be honest I was a little bit afraid of leaving my country and moving to Portugal alone, as this is the first time that I've left my country to come to a foreign country to work, but I told myself that I had to confront my fears and try to do this.
Why is the NCI Academy important to NATO?
I think that the Academy has an important role because it's responsible for the training of NATO and national personnel.
As instructors, we're responsible for teaching students with little to no experience how to install, maintain and troubleshoot various systems. The AirC2 courses we teach are important because they make administrators' lives easier. Students come here in order to improve their knowledge and because they want to be the experts in those systems. They want to learn how to use them in the best way and that's the kind of training and instruction that the Academy provides.
Why is training so important?
Knowledge is power for any human being. I firmly believe a person with knowledge can achieve great things and that training is an essential part of knowledge. Training is the key for the improvement and effectiveness of any organization or business, and this also applies to NATO. A well-trained employee will be ready to handle and deal with difficult and demanding situations, and our job at the Academy is to produce these well-trained personnel.
The great thing about the Academy is that there are usually two instructors in each course, both of whom are experienced and knowledgeable. As an instructor, that makes me feel safe because should an instance arise where I don't know something or don't feel like I've explained something clearly or something stumps me, there is someone else in the room who usually has the answers.
What is the most exciting thing about your role working for the NCI Agency?
The most exciting thing about my role is that I come in contact with people from across the Alliance! They're all coming from different countries and I get to teach them how to work with and navigate different systems. It's a demanding job and a big responsibility but we make sure that when our students leave the Academy, they have all the tools they need in order to implement their training in their daily working environments.
Career Opportunities: The Agency takes diversity seriously and is actively seeking more women to support its work. If you would like the challenge of supporting NATO's mission to protect nearly 1 billion citizens, please bookmark our Vacancies page here. We would love to have you on board!