196+ forum Vienna: Seminaris Hotels win "Hotel Innovation Award 2022"
Award for establishing a cross-departmental, cross-location and cross-hierarchical transformation team that shapes cultural change from the inside out
Other finalists: Hilton Hotels Austria and MHP Hotel AG
Vienna, November 29, 2022 - Seminaris Hotels are the winner of the inaugural "Hotel Innovation Award 2022". The award was presented yesterday during the 196+ forum Vienna trade conference in the ballroom of the Vienna City Hall. Seminaris Hotels had competed for the award in the category of Employee learning & development. Other finalists (in alphabetical order) are Hilton Hotels Austria (Diversity and inclusion management category) and MHP Hotel (Employee learning & development category). Fourteen participants from five European countries applied for the award.
The "Hotel Innovation Award" is aimed at innovative hotels or hotel groups throughout Europe and focuses on a different aspect of innovation in the hospitality sector each year. This year, the focus is on human resource management. Applications could be submitted in the following categories: Recruitment, Leadership, Retention management, Employee learning and development, Employer branding, Diversity and inclusion management, and Digitalization.
Michael Widmann, initiator of the award and jury member: "Seminaris Hotels have successfully established a cross-departmental, cross-site and cross-hierarchical transformation team, the so-called Trafo Team, which is shaping the cultural change from within. This internal change led to a realignment of Seminaris' own product: conference guests no longer receive just a meeting room, but a complete offering for the implementation of agile methods and new work formats. Seminaris has recognized the changing world of work and its disruptive potential for its own business model, as it has become increasingly difficult to recruit and retain skilled employees over the long term. That's why Seminaris is focusing on change from the middle of the workforce."
Another finalist is Hilton Hotels Austria, which has developed a concept to open up new markets and find talent and future potential for the hotel industry. Accordingly, Hilton is recruiting targeted team members of older ages and posting jobs on websites specifically for refugees. Broadening the range of candidates ensures recruiting success and a more diverse work environment. Hilton also works with "Hilfswerk" and other institutions that support the integration of apprentices into the labor market.
MHP Hotel AG - as a further finalist - together with the IST University of Management, Düsseldorf, has set up a dual course of study in which young talents start a distant learning program at the University and complete an internship in three different hotels or brands in three different countries to graduate with a bachelor's degree in hotel management.
The jury of experts*, consisting of seven members in total, was made up of representatives from the fields of human resources, science, operations and consulting. According to 196+ forum Vienna, the decisive factor in selecting the nominees is the interplay of the following criteria:
- Differentiation and game changing
- Scalability and cost-effectiveness
- Impact on employees
- Impact on society and the hotel
About the finalists and the winner votes of the jury members:
Sebastian Noack, Bette: "Innovation starts with people. That is why it is only right for the premiere of this innovation award to also start with the employees. We are very pleased to honour with this award companies that have understood that it is not only the product that counts, but also the host and thus all employees. Only those who enjoy being a host and constantly create a positive atmosphere for all those 'who live in the house' will find high resonance and occupancy at economical (room) prices. The current situation with a shortage of employees offers creative professionals an opportunity to differentiate themselves in the long term. Our finalists demonstrate this."
Celine Chang, Munich University of Applied Sciences: "Seminaris impressed us in the jury with an HR concept that shows that New Work is also possible in the hotel industry. The winner implements exactly what the hotel product promises in its own company: cultural change from the middle of the workforce, agile working, design thinking, purpose and shared values form central pillars of the corporate culture. With the goal 'We make people grow,' Seminars offers space for employees and guests who want to grow beyond themselves."
The ten nominated applications in alphabetical order (including their application category):
- 25hours Hotels (Hamburg, Germany) – Employer branding
- BWH Hotel Group (Eschborn, Germany) – Employee learning & development
- Hilton Hotels Austria (Vienna, Austria) – Diversity & inclusion
- Kempinski Hotels S.A. (Geneva, Switzerland) – Other
- Kerten Hospitality (Dublin, Ireland) – Leadership
- Louvre Hotels Group (Puteaux/La Défense, France) – Employee learning & development
- MHP Hotel AG (Munich, Germany) – Employee learning & development
- RIMC International Hotels & Resorts GmbH (Hamburg, Germany) – Digitalization
- Ruby GmbH (Munich, Deutschland) – Other
- Seminaris Hotels (Berlin, Germany) – Employee learning & development
*Jury member:
- Celine Chang, Hochschule München University of Applied Sciences
- Burkhard von Freyberg, Hochschule München University of Applied Sciences
- Andreas Martin, 196+ events
- Yasamin Miller, PM3A Executive Search
- Sebastian Noack, Bette
- Michael Widmann, PKF hospitality group
- Patrizia Zueck, Ruby
More information about 196+ forum Vienna:
From November 27 to 29, a joint event of PKF hospitality group with Vienna Tourist Board and Museum Booster will take place in Vienna, positioning it as the leading European conference for hospitality, tourism and culture. During the conference, the newly created industry award "Hotel Innovation Award" will be presented for the first time by 196+ forum Vienna. The conference will take place on Monday, November 28, 2022, at the Hilton Park Vienna with around 300 participants from the hospitality, residential, tourism, leisure culture and museum sectors. The main theme is "Place Making" with a focus on innovation. To this end, leading figures from these industries will come to Vienna to address the key challenges facing the sector and present them in talks, expert discussions and based on case studies. On Tuesday, November 29, 2022, Walk & Talk tours will present the latest hotel and tourism projects in Vienna.
Media contact:
Martina Rozok
T +49 30 40044681
M +49 170 2355988
martina.rozok@196plus.com
www.196plus.com