I GRADUATED from Harvard Business School to the lofty position of night clerk at my local Store 24. I must have been one of Harvard’s lowest-paid graduates – and one of Store 24’s most over-qualified clerks.
My motivation was simple – I wanted to stay in Boston because I was in love. The job I’d gone for originally had fallen through – so I had to work by night and job hunt by day. Ultimately I lost my fiancée and ended up in banking – but please don’t judge me on that!
I was born in New York, although my mother is German, and much of my education was in Europe.
Originally I wanted to be a journalist but found working for a regional publication uninspiring and the pay appalling so I opted instead for my Masters in Business Administration.
One of the most influential figures in my professional life was Lindsey Lawrence, my first boss at Bank Boston. She taught me that you don’t have to be typical to be successful. In fact, sometimes when you’re different you have distinct advantages. She wasn’t a banker by trade – she was actually a market researcher who had left a career in consulting to bring up a family. I think she ended up being president of the bank.
What she managed to do was bring the benefits of outside thinking into a very conventional organisation. Her success was based purely on her knowledge and competence – she had the ability to take risks and adapt to change.
Banking took me to Boston, New York and Germany with Citibank, where I headed up the European marketing for Diners Club. But after four years in Frankfurt I needed a new challenge. A friend was working with Time Warner and a start-up opportunity came up with them – a joint venture with Sony, Time Warner and PolyGram building up the direct marketing opportunities within Germany for their music and videos.
That was some achievement and I have to say I would never want to do a start-up again! To have to begin from the absolute basics – hiring your staff, choosing your offices, buying the furniture, striking up your first deals: the learning curve was incredible.
What it made me appreciate – ironically for someone who had come from banking – was the importance of managing money. Working in huge organisations you can easily become complacent but when you’re managing a small business the situation is rather different.
I firmly believe that you should accept and welcome chance and opportunity in your life. That was certainly my basis for going into timeshare.
I was approached by a headhunter for my post at RCI and introduced to Christel DeHaan, the company’s co-founder. She was extremely inspiring – an individual who took a chance and succeeded in creating what has become, 25 years later, the world’s largest timeshare exchange company. I came into the industry at a time of tremendous growth and was appointed to lead RCI through the changes with new business structures and products. Coming in from a different background, I think I have succeeded in giving it a fresh global perspective. It has been possibly the biggest challenge of my career.
After years of working in banking, timeshare was initially a culture shock. The business model was different to what I was used to and the people were different too – driven, successful entrepreneurs who were less impressed with bureaucracy and more by what we could deliver.
My management philosophy has always been to never manage by fear. If you care for people then they will care what they do for you – I firmly believe respect is the key to good performance.
One of my main strengths is I am invariably calm. This makes me predictable as a manager, which puts people at ease. What I seek is the best answer, not perfection.
Above all, my maxim would be never compromise your integrity – it will open you up to justified criticism.
You have to keep things in perspective and time out is important. Exercise is an essential part of my routine. It’s the best way I find to completely switch off, wherever I am in the world.
1977: graduated from Allegheny College with a Bachelor of Science in economics and English.
1981: graduated from Harvard with an MBA in business administration.
1989:left Citibank Chicago to move to Citibank Frankfurt, heading up European marketing for Diners Club.
1993: appointed as managing director of Sounds Plus, a start-up joint venture between Sony, Time Warner and PolyGram.
1996: joined RCI as European marketing director in February and in September became acting managing director, RCI Germany.
1997: appointed executive director, new business development.
1999: appointed as group managing director, RCI Europe.
l You don’t have to be typical to be successful.
l Respect your team, don’t terrorise them.
l Encourage people to take ownership of a
task and complete it – and watch the satisfaction it gives them.
l Seek the right answer – not a paradigm of perfection.
l Learn the art of compromise – but never on your integrity.
l Always try and be open to opportunity.
l Make the most of career moves and always
consider your future potential. Meeting just one key person can change your life, so be open to change.