A Vatelien in Amsterdam

Of Dutch nationality, born in Rotterdam, Isabel de Koning left the Netherlands to study at Vatel Lyon in 2011.

Five years later, with a Bachelor and an MBA in  International Hotel Management,  she landed her first job: Banquets Supervisor at the Amsterdam Okura Hotel in her native country.

THREE HASHTAGS THAT DESCRIBE YOU:

#friendly #ambitious #problemsolver

BEST MEMORIES OF YOUR THEORETICAL COURSES AT VATEL:

The management courses! For the tools I learned how to work with and that I use every day and for all the concrete case studies that we had to solve as a group. Each one of them brought us a little closer to reality in the workplace and helped me become the professional that I am today.

BEST MEMORIES OF YOUR PRACTICAL COURSES AT VATEL:

The week I spent in the kitchens, in the sauce division with Chef Luquet. That’s where I learned that you can work seriously without taking yourself seriously. I spent the whole week laughing but I also learned how to adapt myself, because you never know what the customers will be ordering and how much you’ll have to prepare.

YOUR BEST INTERNSHIP MEMORY:

How kind everyone was at the Grand Hotel Amrâth Kurhaus The Hague, and how they gave me the strength to meet all the challenges. I discovered that I loved organizing banquets and seminars and that I had a gift for doing so. Truly a part of Francois Vatel’s extended family. Because of this experience I was able to apply for the job I now have in one of the Netherlands’ most famous hotels.

YOUR JOB AS THE BANQUETS AND SEMINARS MANAGER IN A FEW WORDS:

The Banquets and Seminars Manager works after the sales department, when an event has been reserved. 

Everything starts out with building blocks: 10 tailorable rooms that I can make into up to 19 meeting rooms.

After that you’ve got the managerial aspects: I supervise a team of butlers who set up the rooms and a team of outsourced employees for the restaurant services.

Each event to be managed is different and each person that you manage is also different. What I love about this line of work is that you’re never bored!

2 HANDS-ON MISSIONS IN YOUR JOB: 

• Managing my teams 
• Ensuring an irreproachable service in a timely fashion

2 OFFICE MISSIONS IN YOUR JOB: 

• Organizing the meetings and handing out the administrative tasks to my teams
• Writing and translating service procedures for new employees

YOUR FAVORITE PLACE AT THE HOTEL:

The 360° view over Amsterdam from the 23rd floor!  The Amsterdam Okura Hotel is a five-star hotel with 300 rooms and four restaurants.

THREE THINGS YOU LOVE ABOUT AMSTERDAM: 

• You go everywhere by bike
• The open-mindedness of the Dutch
• The vitality of the city (atmosphere in the bars, the many cultural and musical events, etc.)

3 VATEL ALUMNI WHO INFLUENCED YOU:

• Allison Scherer, the Human Resource Manager at the Club Med des 2 Alpes.
• Marie-Lys Perrier Bizeau, the Events and Human Resource Manager at the PlanitiSwiss agency in Lausanne in Switzerland
• Pierre Collet, the Restaurant Manager at the 5* Royal Savoy Hotel in Lausanne