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About Us

Engage Compliance is an outsourced Data Protection Officer (DPO) and privacy consultancy with offices in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and the US. We are the embedded privacy team for companies that handle personal data, across B2B and B2C and from Seed to enterprise, working across EU, UK, and US personal data with a focus on SaaS, FinTech, HealthTech, AI, HR Tech, and e-commerce. Founded in 2021, we were built on a simple observation: growing companies need expert privacy support but do not need a full-time hire. Our model is expert-led and team-delivered: a senior practitioner leads every engagement, backed by a named partner network for specialist work.

Experience across 100+ startups and enterprises including Amazon, Coinbase, and Robinhood.

Amazon | Coinbase | Robinhood | AbbVie | Medtronic | Nestle | IKEA | Hopin | EY

Plus 100+ startups and scale-ups, from Pre-Seed to Series C, and legal firms.

Key takeaways

  • Engage Compliance acts as named DPO, notified to the supervisory authority, for technology companies across the EU, UK, and US.
  • Experience across 100+ startups and enterprises including Amazon, Coinbase, and Robinhood, drawn from prior in-house roles as well as current engagements.
  • The model is expert-led and team-delivered: a senior practitioner leads every engagement, backed by a named partner network for specialist work.
  • Every account keeps the same senior DPO rather than passing through a junior handoff, and what that covers is set out on Pricing.

About the Founder

Julian Gage, founder of Engage Compliance

Julian Gage, Founder. 15+ years in privacy program leadership.

Julian’s career has spanned the fastest-growing categories in tech: payments and crypto, e-commerce, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, retail, and consumer events. That breadth means Engage clients get privacy advice grounded in real product, engineering, and regulatory operating experience, not generic compliance theory.

He has acted as Data Protection Officer (DPO) and privacy lead across 100+ organizations, from pre-seed startups to large enterprises, and has built and led privacy programs at Amazon (People/HR data), Coinbase, Robinhood, Medtronic (Global Privacy Lead across EMEA/US/APAC), AbbVie (EU GDPR readiness across 7 EU/UK offices), Hopin (built from scratch), and IKEA, alongside dozens of Series A to D companies. Before founding Engage Compliance, he spent years in internal audit and compliance at EY, Nestle, and AbbVie, working with large multinationals across multiple continents. That audit background is why Engage takes a controls-based, efficiency-focused approach, not just legal checkbox compliance.

Certifications: IAPP CIPP/E, CIPM, CIPP/US. AIGP (AI Governance Professional). Data Protocol Privacy Engineering Certification. OneTrust Elite Certification. Google Cloud AI Certification. MBA from University of Cincinnati. Former IAPP Netherlands Chapter Chair. Speaker at IAPP and US-ASEAN Business Council events. OneTrust PrivacyConnect panelist on Big Data, Machine Learning, and AI.

His expertise spans 30+ regulatory frameworks across EU, UK, US, Americas, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East, with local counsel support where jurisdiction-specific legal advice is required. All engagements are covered by professional indemnity and cyber insurance, we handle breach response directly, and 24/7 emergency support is available to all DPO clients, backed by a network of internal and external partners for legal counsel and backfill coverage.

What our clients say

"Working with Engage was a game changer for our ability to win deals. Their thorough understanding of data protection risks combined with a tailored approach to our unique needs gave us confidence in our compliance efforts, leading to increased commercial success."

CTO, Health Tech Startup

"The Engage team is a fun, engaging, highly intelligent, and well informed expert in the area of data privacy compliance. Advice and suggestions are easy to follow and practical. I would definitely consider working again with Engage"

VP Product, Series C Scale-up

"They provided clear, actionable steps that seamlessly integrated into existing operations. Knowledgeable, approachable, and responsive, making for a smooth and stress-free partnership"

Head of Operations, E-commerce Platform

"One of the few vendors where you actually talk to someone senior who knows what they're doing. No handoffs, no fluff."

Head of Legal, Series B SaaS company

"During our fundraise, every investor privacy question just got handled. Huge weight off my shoulders as a founder."

CEO, FinTech company

What we do

  • DPO function under GDPR Articles 37 to 39 and equivalent obligations under UK GDPR
  • Privacy program build, audit, and remediation
  • Records of Processing Activities (RoPA), Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA), Data Processing Agreements (DPA)
  • Breach response and supervisory authority liaison
  • Enterprise vendor questionnaire support
  • EU AI Act, DORA, HIPAA, CCPA, CPRA, and 20 plus US state law coverage
  • M&A and investor due diligence support

Who we serve

Companies that handle personal data, across B2B and B2C and from Seed to enterprise, including:

  • SaaS platforms processing customer data at scale
  • FinTech and crypto companies handling KYC, AML, and transaction data
  • HealthTech companies processing health and biometric data
  • AI companies subject to the EU AI Act and GDPR jointly
  • HR Tech platforms processing employee data across borders
  • E-commerce platforms operating in multiple jurisdictions
  • Any data-driven B2B or B2C company with regulatory exposure, even where formal DPO appointment is not strictly required

From offices in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and the US, we are active across EU, UK, US, APAC, LATAM, and Middle East jurisdictions through local counsel and partner relationships.

Team and network

Engage is expert-led and team-delivered: every engagement is led personally by a senior practitioner, with specialist partners brought in where needed. That gives you depth without paying for a full bench:

  • Legal counsel: external privacy law partners across EU, UK, and US jurisdictions
  • Surge capacity: cleared senior practitioners for enterprise deals, audits, and M&A diligence
  • Cybersecurity coordination: vetted vCISO and pentest partners

Trust and credentials

  • Every engagement covered by professional indemnity and cyber insurance
  • A senior practitioner on every account, never a junior handoff
  • Transparent pricing from €600 per month

Industries we work across

Tech and SaaS
Fintech and Payments
HealthTech and Digital Health
Medical Devices
Pharma and Life Sciences
AI and Machine Learning
Crypto and Web3
E-commerce and Marketplaces
HRTech
PropTech
EdTech
AdTech and MarTech
Cybersecurity
Investment and Banking
Retail and Consumer
Legal and Consulting

Effortless data compliance: your competitive edge

Through expert guidance and bespoke support, we turn confusing rules from a headache into a competitive advantage. We help you spot and fix potential issues before they become problems, improve customer and partner trust, and keep your focus on growing the business. We blend into your team, giving you the privacy expertise you need without the extra costs or commitments of an internal hire.

We also work alongside law firms, security consultancies and startup platforms through our partner program, so a client who needs privacy handled can be introduced without either side losing the relationship.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a DPO?

Not all companies formally need one. You need a DPO if your core activities involve large-scale processing of personal data or systematic monitoring of individuals. But even if you don't technically need one, most companies we work with appoint a DPO because enterprise customers, investors, and regulators expect it. It comes up in almost every funding round and big deal.

How much does a DPO cost?

Depends on your company size, data complexity, and how many regulations you need to cover. We offer four tiers: Privacy Advisory (From €600 per month), DPO Foundation (From €1,000 per month), DPO Partner (From €2,500 per month), and DPO Complete (From €4,500 per month), plus custom Enterprise engagements. Every engagement is tailored to only what you actually need.

What's the difference between a DPO and an EU Representative?
  • A DPO oversees your data protection compliance and is notified to the supervisory authority.
  • An EU Representative is for non-EU companies processing EU personal data, acting as a local contact for regulators and data subjects.

Not for the same client. The EDPB is clear that one provider cannot serve as both DPO and EU Representative for the same company, because the roles can conflict. We will help you structure both correctly.

How quickly can you start?

Most engagements start within a week. Month one is a focused privacy audit, building your core documentation, aligning priorities, and being notified to the supervisory authority as your DPO. From month two your DPO is fully embedded and handling ongoing compliance, enterprise questionnaires, and anything privacy-related.

What industries do you work with?

SaaS, HealthTech, Fintech, Crypto, HR Tech, e-Commerce, Retail, Investment and Banking, Healthcare, Medtech, and Pharma. Our senior team has led privacy programs at companies from pre-seed startups to large enterprises.

What regulations do you cover?
  • EU GDPR, UK GDPR.
  • US state and federal privacy laws (CCPA/CPRA, HIPAA, GLBA, and others).
  • Brazil LGPD, Canada PIPEDA.
  • Thailand PDPA, China PIPL, India DPDPA, Japan APPI, South Korea PIPA.
  • UAE and Saudi Arabia data protection laws, the EU AI Act, NIS2, DORA.
  • Frameworks like ISO 27001, ISO 27701, SOC 2, and NIST.
What about AI compliance: what's needed?

Three things matter most. Keep and follow an internal AI policy that sets approved and non-approved uses, so confidential or personal data does not end up in AI tools or model training. Assess your product's use of AI for data quality, monitoring and logging, and transparency (can you show how a result was reached?). And avoid prohibited uses, such as AI that manipulates behavior to cause harm, real-time remote biometric identification for law enforcement, or systems that exploit vulnerable groups. Our EU AI Act guide covers the detail.

What about HR, Marketing, Product, CS teams?

A few team-level rules of thumb. Marketing should only track or advertise to B2C users with consent (limited B2B exceptions apply) and always allow opt-out. Product should avoid reusing personal data for unrelated purposes without consent (product improvement and analytics are common exceptions) and should run a privacy risk assessment. HR should not use employee data for secondary purposes like monitoring without consent, and Customer Support should keep notes professional, since a customer can request a copy of them. We build these into your onboarding audit.

Do US laws differ from the EU?

US and EU rules are broadly similar, with some key differences. California and EU/UK requirements only apply when you offer services to, or process data from, people who live there. California adds an opt-out of selling or sharing data and allows 15 extra days to fulfill data subject requests. The US generally permits marketing to end users without prior consent (not compliant in the EU/UK), and cookies must be opt-in before processing data in the EU/UK, whereas the US usually allows auto opt-in as long as users can also opt out. Our CCPA guide covers the detail.

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