Could you tell us more about your career background within Kempinski?
I started my career with Kempinski on April 5, 1994 – I distinctly remember it was a Tuesday – at age 24 at the Kempinski Hotel Airport Munich. After almost 20 years at the hotel, I had the opportunity to join the team at Palais Hansen Kempinski Vienna in 2013. Since joining, I have always worked in the Engineering department, taking on roles of Deputy Department Manager up to Director of Engineering. After going on Task Force assignment at Palais Hansen Kempinski Vienna in 2013, I fell in love with the city and this beautiful building, when I was offered a permanent position at the hotel, I very happily accepted the new challenge. Two years after joining the new property I became part of the ExCom team. I have been working in Vienna ever since.
What is your most memorable Kempinski moment?
Throughout my 25-year career I have experienced many memorable moments, however one that immediately comes to my mind. It must have been around early 2000s, we had a booking for a Diplomatic delegation at the Kempinski Hotel Airport Munich – one of the requests was we install 50 analog telephones in one of the rooms. As you can imagine, this was a very unique request that requires significant technical preparation and engineering. With a lot of enthusiasm, great team work and the support from the German Telekom, we were able to fulfill the request of this group and we successfully installed 50 telephones within a limited physical space.
Tell us about one hidden treasure in your hotel.
What many people do not know is that we have an enormous water basin in the basement of the hotel – it is possibly around 3 to 4 times the size of a swimming pool. The water is crystal clear and sparkles in the light, it is quite something and is amazing to look at. The basin contains sufficient water to put out a fire. Let’s hope we never need to make use of it.