Kostas Grammenos is an academic. Since 1982, he has been a visiting professor at City University London, where he became a professor of Shipping, Commerce, and Finance in 1986, founding the corresponding department.

In 1984, he established the postgraduate program in this field, followed by the creation of similar programs in Logistics, Commerce, and Finance in 1997, and in Energy, Commerce, and Finance in 2002. He is the Vice-Rector of City University and the head of the undergraduate school at Cass Business School of the same university. He is also a visiting professor at the University of Antwerp. From 1998 to 2002, he served as President of the International Association of Maritime Economists, and in 2006, he was appointed president of the newly established International University of Greece, based in Thessaloniki.

In 1994, Queen Elizabeth awarded him the title of Officer of the British Empire for his contribution to teaching and the promotion of Greek-British relations. In 1998, he was named Personality of the Maritime Trade, and in 1999, he was awarded the highest academic title in the United Kingdom, that of Doctor of Sciences. In 2009, he was once again awarded the title of Commander of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth for his services to teaching and research. In December 2011, he was included in the list of the British maritime newspaper Lloyd’s List as one of the 100 most influential personalities in the global shipping industry during 2011, ranking 65th.

He is also a member of the American Bureau of Shipping.