Coincidences, detours and the tourism expertise of IMC Krems

With her IMC bachelor degree in Tourism and Leisure Management, Sabine Rössl now works as Director of Digital & Revenue Development in a privately run hotel group in Switzerland, is committed to raising awareness of human-machine coexistence and finds balance in her own small forestry business.

IMC bachelor degree as a foundation

Sabine Rössl's journey into the world of tourism began at the Rössl Inn in Södingtal, western Styria, which has been in her family for generations and instilled in her a love of hospitality in every sense of the word. After graduating from the hotel management school in Bad Gleichenberg, she moved to Cornwall in southern England for an eight-month hotel management trainee programme.

With her first management experience under her belt, Sabine stopped off at Lake Wörthersee to gain further expertise in the food and beverage sector and as a concierge. At that time, she was spoilt for choice: she had the option of participating in a hotel opening in New York, becoming a personal flight attendant for an international businessman, or starting an English-language bachelor's degree in Tourism and Leisure Management at IMC Krems. Sabine's gut feeling led her to choose the degree programme, which in retrospect was the right decision.

In order not to lose touch with the professional world while studying full-time, she decided to take on a voluntary summer job in Portorož, Slovenia. Unplanned, Sabine ended up in the reservations department, where she came into contact with revenue management for the first time – a groundbreaking coincidence. During her practical semester abroad, she went to the London head office of an international hotel association, where, without any prior knowledge, she was able to assist almost a hundred hotels with e-commerce and revenue developments.

Love from Switzerland meets a fast-paced lifestyle

After completing her studies, she spent a winter season in the reservations department of a luxury hotel in St. Moritz. In the end, she stayed there for almost three years and also found her ‘concierge to fall in love with’ – or rather, he found her.

From the champagne climate, the couple moved to green Styria, where Sabine was given the opportunity to set up the newly created e-commerce department for a privately run Austrian hotel group. The almost four years in Graz reflected a certain Sturm und Drang phase in her life. She flew on business trips from Moscow to Shanghai, threw herself into a hunting course and further training in forestry, gave guest lectures on e-commerce and related topics at the IMC Krems and the College for Tourism and Leisure Management in Bad Gleichenberg, and travelled with her partner to some remote corners of the world such as Belize. Patagonia or Mongolia. Her body clearly showed her that this pace of life was a little too fast, and she needed to reflect and slow down a few gears.

At the start of the pandemic, Sabine and her partner found themselves back in Switzerland – this time, somewhat unexpectedly, in the dreamy canton of Ticino, even though she initially understood very little Italian. They have now been living there for five years and recently became the proud parents of a wonderful daughter.

Commitment to and with artificial intelligence

Professionally, she is responsible for setting up the newly created Digital & Revenue Development department within a privately run hotel group with four luxury hotels on the lake and in the mountains. The job is enriching and promising, but it also requires a great deal of mental effort. Revenue management is an essential basis for this, but it requires the necessary resources to achieve satisfactory results.

The already dynamic digital scene has become almost unpredictable due to the changes surrounding artificial intelligence. In order to keep her focus on the essentials, Sabine decided to study Digital Ethics & Governance at a private university in Lucerne. She has been working on a topic close to her heart for some time now, namely the attempt to sensitise our society, in a completely value-free manner, to a ‘healthy’ coexistence between humans and machines. Because it seems to her that artificial intelligence is here to stay.

Sabine Rössl in an interview about her bachelor degree in Tourism & Leisure Management:

Why did you decide to pursue a bachelor degree at the University of Applied Sciences Krems?

If you wanted to specialise further in tourism, IMC Krems was the place with the best reputation for this. This ultimately had a major influence on my final decision. Starting a degree programme after already having been in the workforce for a few years is certainly a change in many ways. However, I was aware that a bachelor degree programme in particular would provide a useful foundation for my long-term ambitions and visions.

How did studying at IMC Krems influence your professional career?

The theory taught, with its strong practical relevance, was the perfect complement to all my previous experience. Although in my case some of the topics covered at hotel management school overlapped with those at IMC Krems, the degree programme went into much greater depth and allowed me to consolidate what I had already learned in a holistic way. 

What specific content from your studies helps you in your current work in Digital & Revenue Development?

When I look at the six-semester syllabus that was in place at the time, it is primarily the subjects of Project Management, Tourism Consumer Behaviour, Law, Hospitality Management and E-Tourism. In Project Management, it is the classic processes and procedures that sometimes seemed rather abstract during the theory courses. In Tourism Consumer Behaviour, it was understanding how granular guest behaviour can be filtered and the complexity of the decisions that take place in the background.

The practical legal lessons taught me how to read and interpret legal contracts and legal texts, which I am now confronted with on a daily basis in my professional responsibilities, for example in relation to data protection, but also in cross-group contracts. The hospitality management classes gave me an understanding of the complex interplay between the various departments and workflows within hotels and hotel groups. And finally, the subject of e-tourism, with its broad matrix, actually provides relevant cornerstones for my current field of work in digital development.

How and where do you find balance?

My family and my personal roots have always been very important to me, which is why I enjoy commuting back to my home in Styria. Another pleasant balance is provided by the forestry business and alpine pasture that my parents passed on to me. In addition to my duties there, I appreciate spending time in nature and being inspired by my own forest.

Is there anything else you would like to share in conclusion?

On the one hand, it is not necessarily the direct path in life that is the right one. Often, it is the surprising detours that are needed to get closer to one's personal goals. And on the other hand, it is a wonderful feeling when you can pass on what you have learned and experienced to interested people - especially when you yourself have been fortunate enough to be accompanied by valuable mentors time and again over the years.

Tourism and Leisure Management