Tell us a little bit about your time at Kempinski
I have spent 15 years with Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates. I am a Myanmar national, a graduate of Dagon University in Myanmar, I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics, and I am currently enrolled in Business Administration courses. I started my career as an Event Coordinator in 2002, at a well-situated 5-star luxury hotel in Yangon, Myanmar. Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates was the first company of my hotelier career abroad and has become my second home and family. Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates was established on the 6th of April 2006, and one year after opening, I joined as an F&B hostess in the biggest restaurant, “Sezzam”, in October 2007. After two years of service, I started to manage more responsibilities, handling the retail shop on top of my job as a hostess. Three years later, my successful experience led me to consider administration, and I was privileged to be enrolled in a cross-training programme in the Human Resources department. In 2011, I was transferred into HR as an administrator. Two years later, I was promoted to HR Coordinator. My current role is as a Human Resources Executive / Generalist. I am focusing on ensuring that we provide the highest service standards to all our stakeholders, with emphasis on accurate data entry and employee relations related to payroll, status changes, and off-boarding formalities.
Can you name a memorable moment during your career with us?
There have been many memorable moments in my journey at Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates. In 2012, I was nominated as a DNA Champion for the month of December, and I won the DNA Champion of the Year. While in the awarding ceremony, my heart was beating faster than ever. I couldn’t stop smiling with joy. With this, I had the chance to visit our property in Istanbul, Turkey. I had a wonderful experience during my stay at Çırağan Palace Kempinski Istanbul, one of the world’s leading luxury hotels. It was one of the many favourite moments in my life. I was able to meet a lot of people and experience different cultures. I am always thankful to Kempinski, the management, and all team members, as these prizes were awarded and appreciated by the GM and the entire management team.
What do you love about your job?
I love that I get to provide support to our employees and give them the utmost service. It’s satisfying when someone thanks you after helping them. My favourite aspect of my jobs is ensuring smooth and efficient operational performance, by creating good relationships across all departments and increasing support to all our associates while working together to achieve the target and goals. I love our brand and how the management takes care of our employees in order to drive employee engagement. Having the feeling of security—in the sense of belonging like in a family within my HR team—is the best.
How is Kempinski different from other places you’ve worked in?
Our brand management has implemented the right recruitment plan to hire the right people in both back-of-house and front-of-house departments. This encourages the team to always drive improvements within the hotel and for long-term success. This makes us different from other hotel chains. By working in Kempinski, I could push myself to quickly learn new things and adapt to the challenges to make better progress in my career.