CIESM Headquarters are located Villa Girasole, 16 bd de Suisse, in Monaco. This is where science programs and initiatives are managed and monitored by a central team of marine specialists. In 2017 the Commission opened offices in Paris as well, back at the Oceanographic Institute where it was seated in the 1930s, with a focus on the interface between science and marine policy.

Prof. Laura Giuliano, Director General (since September 2023)
Ph.D. (1996) Univ. Marseille (France) followed by a PostDoc in Germany. Then based at the CNR Marine Institute in Messina (Sicily), where she directed a number of international research projects, publishing in leading international journals (Science, Nature, PNAS). In 2005 Dr Giuliano was detached to CIESM HQ to advise on the emerging sector of marine genetic resources. In 2014 she was appointed Director of IAMC - the multi-disciplinary marine research Institute of CNR covering southern Italy - before returning to CIESM in 2016 as Director of Science.

Elected DG by the CIESM Board in 2023. The Director General of the Commission oversees the scientific and geographic development of the Commission, and is particularly involved in the scientific strategy and cross-Basin research initiatives through the Science Council which she presides.

Prof. Frederic Briand, outgoing DG (assisting with the transition period until December 2023)
Ph.D. (1974) at the University of California. Professor of Marine Sciences in Canada, with field studies on the dynamics of marine systems in the north Pacific, the north Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea. Discovered a series of ecosystem 'markers' and invariants in the architecture of food webs.

After returning to Europe to lead programs in International Organisations (Unesco, IUCN), was appointed DG of CIESM in 1991 with the mandate to turn it into a modern, science-based organisation. Founding editor of the CIESM Research Monographs series, Marine Policy Series and Exotic Atlas collection. Also served for 20 years as Whaling Commissioner to the IWC.

Dr Paula Moschella, Head, Marine Biodiversity and Conservation
Ph.D. in marine ecology (2003), Univ. Southampton, UK; laurea (BSc, MSc) 1996, Univ. Genoa, Italy.
Dr Moschella oversees all CIESM Program related to Marine Biodiversity; she represents the Commission in international forums dealing with marine conservation, and directs every three years the CIESM Congress Team.

Further assists the Director General for administrative matters.

Dr Loriane Mendez,  Research Officer, Marine Vertebrates
Ph.D. on Seabird Ecology (2018) Univ. La Rochelle, France; MSc in marine ecology (2013) Univ. Aix Marseille.
Integration of marine birds into CIESM programs.

Kaveh Rassoulzadegan, IT Officer
Software engineering specialist. Full stack programmer in charge of software development planning and production of database interfaces. CIESM web contents designer and servers' administrator.

Annelyse Gastaldi, Media Relations & Digital Mapping
MSc. on Geo-Systems (2008) Univ. Nice, France.
In addition to press relations, produces online maps that integrate latest records from CIESM Programs.