Corporate Vision September 2017

16 CORPORATE VISION / September 2017 , Key Players in the Hybrid Hotel Market MEININGERHotels was founded in 1999 in Berlin, with its first property being located at Meininger Street. Today, MEININGER is a key player in the hybrid hotel market, with 17 operating sites and 8,585 beds across 11 European cities. Each of the hotels has a unique design concept, offering a modern and exuberant atmosphere with a number of ancillary facilities and common areas sold on a per bed or room basis. Although the core target customers remain educational / school groups, the flexible room type structure and the model offering is increasingly appealing to families, leisure and corporate travellers who are looking for a relaxed, informal and comfortable hotel. MEININGER has grown continuously over the past 10 years, generating revenue of approximately € 70million in FY17. MEININGER is fully owned by the British tourism enterprise Holidaybreak Ltd, which is owned by Cox & Kings Ltd and is one of the oldest and most recognised travel operators in the world, with a market leadership position in India. The strategic relationship between Holidaybreak Ltd and MEININGER, under the Cox & Kings stewardship, has been key to the success of MEININGER. “I initially joined MEININGER in April 2013, as MD and Head of Projects. This served to be great foundation for me in learning more about the industry, and getting a real understanding of how the MEININGER concept is right for today’s urban traveller. I took over as CEO in June 2016, with my initial focus in creating a senior leadership team that would be best positioned for our extensive expansion plans. It is a great pleasure to work with such a talented team of executives who have vast experience not only from the hospitality industry but also technology, retail and service sectors. With this diversity and strength, we are geared to take MEININGER through to its next phase and I am proud to lead a team who are more than capable of driving growth, delivering excellence and executing our strategic plans by delivering value to the organisation and most importantly, our guests. Our team is one of the key factors to the success of our business. You have to make sure to have the right people - professionals with knowhow and the drive to succeed - as your brand ambassadors. At MEININGER, we are developing and promoting our own employees first, before recruiting externally, as it is our current employees who know the business and live the MEININGER spirit. Talent development and acquisition is a critical component of our strategy and we have a dedicated team with the purpose of attracting and developing our people. We are a highly sociable team at MEININGER; we spend a lot of time together at work and we also enjoy each other’s company after hours, so we look for any opportunity to celebrate our successes, birthdays, work anniversaries and just enjoy time together where we can relax and unwind. We are also pretty competitive and a number of the team participate in several sports competitions with MEININGER as the sponsor – building that MEININGER spirit! We are keen to create a work atmosphere that is open, welcoming and offers a sense of family. Some of our staff even bring their dogs to work, including me! Coco helps me keep the stress levels low and acts as my ‘Feel Good Manager’. I’m hoping that the environment that we’ve created together with a clear vision of the future enables all of us to achieve the best possible results. In terms of my day, I usually start by reading the news, checking my emails and reviewing our internal reports that have come in overnight. The flat hierarchy at MEININGER and the short communications lines with our shareholders enables me to make decisions quickly, which is critical in the fast-moving environment we are operating in. Born in Austria, I graduated from the Austrian Military Academy. Very soon, my career path led me further abroad with stops in New York, London, The Hague and Vienna. For several years, I was engaged at Senior Level at a United Nations affiliated company in The Netherlands, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, and have also worked in various field Missions for the UN. My time in The Netherlands, enabled me also to work as an Advisor to the Austrian Ambassador in the Netherlands. Additional assignments were in project consultancy and management in Europe and Asia for an Asian investment group also in the real estate area. Prior to joining MEININGER, I worked as the Executive Director for a Dutch developer in co-operation with an Asian investment group. My responsibilities were mainly in project selection, fund raising, acquisition and project execution of residential and commercial real estate in Europe. I am very lucky to have had such a varied and exciting career but being selected as the recipient of the CEO of the Year Award is truly an honour that gives me great confidence knowing that 1709CV05