Faster, more efficient and more direct; this is how the new sales structure of the Steigenberger Hotel Group, which operates the brands Steigenberger Hotels & Resorts and InterCityHotels, will be presented to the market in future. Following the repositioning of the company a global sales structure has been developed, which will enable the newly created Global Sales Team to look after major clients in the relevant specialist sectors, providing both individual attention and skilled technical support. The key idea behind the global sales structure is personal service. The new concept will satisfy the increasing level of individual support expected by the client and ensure a high degree of technical expertise. 
 

The global sales structure of the Steigenberger Hotel Group consists of 19 members of staff. Below the Global Sales Director there are Key Account Directors and Managers, who focus on the specialist sectors of Automobile/Suppliers, Chemistry/Pharmaceuticals, National Associations, Banks/ Insurance Companies/Consultancy Organisations and the regions of USA, UK, Switzerland and Austria.

As a consequence of the introduction of a global sales team the five national sales offices were disbanded towards the end of 2004 and the staff integrated into the hotels. The over 120- strong sales force is now primarily concerned with the sales associated with each hotel while also acting for the whole Steigenberger Hotel Group. As before, the objective here was to provide a more personal service.

The new Steigenberger Sales formation was preceded by an Assessment Centre, attended by all Steigenberger and InterCityHotels sales personnel. This is the very first time that an Assessment Centre has been carried out in the German hotel industry in this way. It provided valuable insights into the strengths and weaknesses of the sales force as well as the sales structure. The results could then be translated into direct action.

Following the Assessment Centre, each member of staff was interviewed at length, which not only provided an evaluation of individual training measures but also dealt with the validation or alteration of the job remit and the potential for promotion. It was an opportunity to evaluate staff requirements and the future job specification for sales personnel. New sales personnel were also recruited: in future all new members of staff will attend an Assessment Centre.

The basic changes in the Sales Department of the Steigenberger Hotel Group should considerably strengthen the company�s market position. The relocation of sales responsibility into the operational area will ensure a high level of personal service and individual support, which current market opinion sees as essential elements of successful sales.

The Steigenberger Hotel Group currently operates 77 hotels under the brand names Steigenberger Hotels & Resorts and InterCityHotels in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Egypt. A hotel brand with a long tradition: for more than seventy years the name Steigenberger has stood for the very best in European hotel quality. The family-owned enterprise was founded in 1930 by Albert Steigenberger when he took over the hotel "Europäischer Hof" in Baden-Baden. The Steigenberger family is today the main shareholder of the corporation and still stands by the side of the management and the employees of the Steigenberger Hotels AG and is substantially involved in the development of this corporation.