I was privileged to do an apprentice-ship in a small hotel and it became clear to me that I wanted to pursue a career in the hotel industry. I had great colleagues who taught me all about hotels and passed on their love of the hotel industry to me.

Due to my passion for the hospitality industry, I got involved with hotel schools to pass on my knowledge and experience to future talents. In recognition of my voluntary work I am very proud that I was awarded as an Ambassador for hotel apprentice-ship by the Bavarian Hotel and Restaurant Association. I am able to pass on my knowledge to students and apprentices. I really enjoy supporting such a diverse group of future talents as they go through their 3 years of vocational school and watch them begin to establish themselves in the industry.

I have been lucky enough to have the opportunity as a HR Manager to welcome apprentices into the hotel world and watch them find their way into the positions, which suit them best.  Every day is different and there are so many talents, who are having their future career in front of them; it is cool and fun to see them find their own way and offering a helping hand when needed. Every apprentice is different and faces their own unique challenges. My job is to be on their side to support the programme, which offers a full experience of hotel operations.

You can always change your role; you don’t have to stay in the same position your whole life. I love that! I enjoy working with people and show them the endless career possibilities in our industry – that’s why I like hospitality, there are so many options you can choose.

My current job is completely different from my last role in a hotel, where my duties as a HR Manager was to oversee the entire employee experience and manage the talent life cycle. Now I have a larger scope in the corporate office as Talent & Culture Manager Future Talents. I generate programmes, leading projects and start new concepts; I create road maps for future talents in the hotels.

During their three year programme the apprentices learn the practical part in the hotel and the theory in the vocational schools in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. I developed the standard apprentice ship programme for the Accor Hotels with Welcome days, Masterclasses and Career days to keep the graduates of this programmes in our hotels. My biggest success is the digitalisation of the apprentice-ship management.

In addition to school and company training, I would like to work with Accor in the future. Why? To offer my skills and knowledge, especially in the digital area, and thus offer apprentices the best possible training in the hotel industry. Accor has been offering a great apprenticeship program for years and we are really good at it. There are a lot of great General Managers, trainers and staff, who are supporting the development of our future talents.

If you are new in the industry I like to share with you the following: take your time to find your passion, be open minded, ask questions and challenge the status quo. At Accor we will help you to live your passion, be all you are, grow learn and enjoy, work with purpose and explore limitless opportunities.

The decision to do my apprentice-ship in the hotel industry has provided me with a fulfilling career and I am happy that this career allows me to give back and support the next generation of apprentices.