As a team, we overcome every obstacle.

Matthias Wirth joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants at the turn of the millennium. In 2003, Manuel Konen and Arne Lorenzen appointed him as first additional Partner and Managing Director.

Following his apprenticeship in a Relais & Chateaux Hotel as a cook, Matthias was eager to gain additional experience in various other departments in the hotel business. He therefore continued on his career path first as Management Assistant at Steinberger Hotels & Resorts and afterwards as Human Resources Manager for Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts. During his studies in Economy, Matthias developed his taste for crunching the numbers, which helped him tremendously in becoming the undisputed expert in taking care of all finance related issues. But Matthias is also a people-Person, who highly appreciates the daily exchange with clients and applicants. And if there is one thing he cares more about than business, it is the weekly results of his favorite football team, FC Bayern München.

Fun fact: Family, football and skiing

Motto: Never give up! Always keep moving forward!

Ulrich Wilhelm joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in 2004 and progressed into Managing Director and business partner in 2013.

Ulrich spearheaded the expansion of Konen & Lorenzen into Dubai and thereby venturing into the Middle Eastern market. Following his successful assignment in Dubai, he relocated to our Swiss office in 2009 and transferred to Düsseldorf, Germany with his family in 2013.

Prior to Ulrich’s professional journey with Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants, he was an avid traveller exploring different parts of the world. After his apprenticeships in culinary and restaurant management, Ulrich joined hotels part of the ‘Leading Hotels of the World’ group. Amongst others, he held various positions such as Food & Beverage Manager at the ‘The Orchards Hotel’ in Williamstown, MA, in the United States, and Director of Food & Beverage at the Kempinski Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Hospitality industry is his passion, and with Ulrich’s worldwide experience and extensive network, he is able to connect customers and applicants successfully. Even though Ulrich is no longer a globetrotter, he now enjoys travelling on holidays with his family.

Fun fact: Anything related to cuisine, good wine, good food and quality time with his family

Motto: Our heads are round, so that thoughts can change direction.

Antje-Katrin Scheller joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in 2006 and supports our Team Executive & Rooms Division Europe.

Antje-Katrin is a specialist when it comes to Rooms Division. Before she came to Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants, she had already worked in the same field at the Four Seasons Hotels on Hawaii and The Ritz-Carlton in Wolfsburg. She finished her studies in Business Administration with a diploma in Tourism & Marketing. Today Antje-Katrin focuses on helping others with their career, for which she uses her own experiences. She is not only a reliable contact person for her clients and applicants, but she is also appreciated by her colleagues for her honesty and commitment.

Fun fact: Spending time with her children, travelling with family and friends, sewing, going out for dinner, working in the garden, skiing

Motto: per aspera ad astra

After completing her apprenticeship in hotel management Kirsten worked in Germany, Great Britain and Switzerland. She joined the Konen & Lorenzen family in August 2008 after visiting the hotel management school in Berlin. Since then she proofed her versatility and flexibility by fulfilling a variety of positions as Office Manager or Consultant for the teams Admin, Rooms and Executive. She is a passionate networker and likes to pair people, who otherwise possibly never met for successful cooperations.

Fun Fact: Family & Friends, travelling, culture and good food

Motto: Never catch to stop, never stop to begin. (Marcus Tullius Cicero)

Malu Lopez joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in July 2015 straight from the University of Plymouth in the United Kingdom with a Master of Science in Business and Management.

As Consultant, Malu supports our Team Executive & Rooms Division Europe. For clients, applicants and colleagues she is a competent and reliable contact person. In addition, she is fast, nimble and always “on the ball” – she puts all her energy into her job. After previous stays in Spain, Great Britain and the Netherlands, her next destinations will be Namibia and Tanzania. Fortunately for us, this will only be for her holidays, and on returning she will have lots of exciting stories to tell.

Fun fact: She loves rollercoasters.

Motto: Love it, leave it or change it.

Maresa von Eynern joined our Team Executive & Rooms Division Europe at Konen & Lorenzen as Consultant in November 2018.

After an apprenticeship in the hotel industry, Maresa completed a degree in business administration with a focus on Hospitality Management. She occupied various Sales & Marketing positions e.g. at Le Mériden Piccadilly London and worked her way up to Executive Assistant. She has been in charge of career fairs and various recruiting events at the YOURCAREERGROUP for over 8 years. When it comes to promoting our Hospitality industry to young graduates and managers, Maresa works hard and with enthusiasm to match companies with talents. She combines her good knowledge of the industry and her networking skills with charm and empathy.

Fun fact: My both sons, activities with family and friends, at last doing sports and seeing London again

Motto: Happiness is not about having little or no difficulties, it is about overcoming them victoriously and gloriously (Carl Hilty)

Vanessa Tönges joined the Konen & Lorenzen family in April 2019 to support our Team Executive & Rooms Division Europe as a Consultant / Assistant to Managing Director.

After graduating from high school, Vanessa moved to the other end of the world and lived in Australia for almost one year. She returned back to Germany to complete her apprenticeship in the hotel business at Lindner Hotels & Resorts, which sparked her passion for working with many different personalities in the hotel industry. After four years in various Sales positions with different Lindner Hotels, Vanessa left the company as Sales Manager and deputy head of department, to fulfill her lifelong dream, returning to Australia to improve her language skills. With fresh spirit and full of go, she is now back in Dusseldorf, supporting Konen & Lorenzen as a Consultant.

Fun Fact: Travelling (leaving the continent at least once a year), visiting restaurants, reading, amusement parks, sports, game nights

Motto: If you can dream it, you can do it. (Walt Disney)

Lina Siepmann supports our Team Executive & Rooms Division Europe since November 2018 as a Recruiter / Executive Assistant.

After successfully completing her hotel education at Hyatt Regency Dusseldorf, Lina worked in Front Office and Event Sales at Hyatt Cologne, Hyatt Düsseldorf and recently at Andaz London. After her stay abroad in London, Lina moved back home and started as a Team Assistant in the Team Executive Europe at Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants.

Fun fact: travel, sport, friends & family

Motto: It’s not enough to want – you have to do it.

Maximiliane Wojdynski supports Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in Düsseldorf as a team assistant since October 2021.

She started her career with graduating in tourism management. During her studies she was able to gain practical experience in front office at A&O Hostel and Düsseldorf Airport. After successfully completing her bachelor’s degree in 2020, Maximiliane studied economics at the Bergische Universität Wuppertal in 2021 in preparation for her master’s degree. Luckily for Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants Maximiliane decided to put her masters on hold to gain practical working experience and joined us as Team Assistant.

Fun Fact: travel, good food, family and friends, enjoying the nature

Motto: If plan A didn`t work, the alphabet has 25 more letters.

Our specialist in Sales & Marketing, has been in the Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants team since 2003. He became Partner in 2004 and Managing Director in 2013.

Hendrik has a great passion for travelling, and his favourite destination is the USA. Therefore, after finishing his apprenticeship in Hotel Management at the Grand Elysée Hotel in Hamburg, he first went to Florida. Then, after graduating with an M.A. (Magister Artium) in Applied Culture Sciences, he went to California to gain work experience. Subsequently, he started his career as a Recruitment Consultant in a number of renowned companies in Ludwigsburg and Düsseldorf.  Afterwards he returned to his hometown Hamburg to set up our office and his team. As a proper citizen of Hamburg, he is also a loyal fan of the football team Hamburger SV.

Fun fact: Travelling, friends and family

Motto: Don’t underestimate people, who make a step backwards. They might be preparing a run-up.

Norman Bloemberg joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in Hamburg as Senior Consultant for our Team Commercial Europe in June 2008 and is Head of department since December 2016.

Norman is a likeable maverick and therefore our allround trouble-shooter in the Hamburg office. In addition to his daily search for the missing puzzle piece for his clients, he is a sought-after contact person for any issues concerning IT, as well as for any concerns, wishes and enquiries of any kind. His many years of experience help him to advise our applicants on their careers. After finishing his studies in Hotel Management, he worked for several hotels of the Marriott International Hotel Group in the area of Sales & Marketing, and recently as Director of Sales in Berlin.

Fun fact: Family and his motorbike

Motto: Be yourself!

Sabine Ahlbrecht supports Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants as Senior Consultant of our Team Commercial Europe in Hamburg. She joined the company in July 2003.

Sabine is one of the longest-standing employees at Konen & Lorenzen, and was significantly involved in the setting up of our office in Hamburg. For many years, she has brought clients and applicants together, and she still enjoys getting to know new people and being able to give them career advice based on her own experience. Prior to starting at Konen & Lorenzen, she had already been active in the area of recruitment and marketing. She gained her expertise through years of experience in the hotel business and her studies of Cultural Science with a major in Business Economics, Tourism & Marketing.

Fun fact: Having a relaxing time with family and friends.

Motto: Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world. (Albert Einstein)

Henrik Lange supports our Team Commercial since August 2015.

Quite soon, it became obvious to all colleagues that he is a charming, open and hearty man from the North of Germany. A “bad mood” is something unknown to him. All these qualities made it possible for him to gain a firm foothold in Sales. On finishing his apprenticeship at Hotel Louis C. Jacob in Hamburg, and after an internship at Park Hyatt Washington D.C., he went to Zürich where he was responsible for the Event and Sales department of Park Hyatt Zürich. But his hometown Hamburg was calling, which is why he moved back there and strengthened the Cluster Sales Team of both Marriott International Hotels before he started at Konen & Lorenzen. He shares his passion for Hamburg and the football team Hamburger SV with some colleagues, but the title of the most passionate sports fanatic is his alone.

Fun fact: Football, family and travelling

Motto: Never judge a book by its cover.

Wilfried Stübchen started with Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in October 2013 as Senior Consultant for our Team Dubai and supports now our Team Commercial Europe.

Prior joining Konen & Lorenzen, Wilfried was with Jumeirah Group for many years in Global Sales and on property based in Germany and the UAE. His association to the diversified Middle Eastern culture and multi-national community kindled his enthusiasm to work for our office in Dubai. Wilfried has in-depth expertise in the areas of Sales, Marketing, Revenue/Distribution and Rooms Division, and is in the possession of an extensive network of partners, which today are of great benefit to his applicants and clients.

Fun fact: Tennis and football

Motto: If you don’t try, you will never fly.

Britta Kirsch joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in March 2022 and supports our Team Commercial as a Junior Consultant.

Britta, who is a native of Northern Germany, has joined the Hamburg team and her open-mindedness and positive attitude enabled her to quickly integrate. She knew from an early age that she belonged in the hotel industry because of her cheerful character and lifelong wanderlust.

For her training as a hotel clerk, Britta decided to join the privately run 5* Sport- und Kurhotel “Sonnenalp” in the Oberallgäu, Germany. After a year as a receptionist at the 5* Hotel Grande Roche in Paarl/South Africa, her path led her back to the mountains to Kleinwalsertal/Austria. The opening of the “Travel Charme Ifen Hotel” was one of her most exciting and biggest professional challenges. Afterwards, Britta slowly headed north again with an almost 10-year stop in Frankfurt, where she worked as Front Office Manager at the Villa Kennedy, among other positions. With her assignment at Konen & Lorenzen, Britta has arrived in Hamburg with her family and is happy to breathe the Nordic air again.

Fun Fact: Family, Sports, travelling and reading

Motto: Don‘t dream your life, but live your dreams.

Jens Körner joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in spring 2015 after years of working in China, and has since then been supporting our Team F&B.

If you ask Jens which countries he likes the most, it is not without reason that he mainly names Asian countries. For almost 8 years, Jens lived in Shanghai, where he gained a lot of experience in the fields of Food & Beverage, Event Management and Catering at an Asian gastronomy company to which, among others, the Paulaner Bräuhaus Shanghai and KÄFER by The Binjiang One belong. You would think that even though he spent so many years in a world metropolis, moving to Düsseldorf would be enough of a contrast. But not for Jens. He could not wait to leave this busy city life behind and he found a house for himself and his family in the rural Lower Rhine region.

Fun fact: Spending quality time with his family and travelling to unspoilt places

Motto: Aphorisms cause reactions – sometimes it is just the shaking of heads.

Maximilian Brünnette has been a Consultant with our Team F&B Europe at Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants since August 2018.

After completing his apprenticeship in hotel business at the Maritim Hotel next to the Airport in Düsseldorf, Maximilian joined the prestigious Hotel Breidenbacher Hof, where he was in charge for banquet, catering and restaurant service. In 2017 Maximilian felt like supplementing his operational experience with a corresponding academic education and decided to study Tourism-, Hotel- and Eventmanagement at the University Fresenius.

Fun Fact: Good food, good music, exploring the world

Motto: He who stops being better stops being good!

Katharina is working for the Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants as Consultant part of our Team F&B. In 2007 she successfully completed her training in hotel management at the Lindner Congress Hotel in Düsseldorf and hereafter held positions such as barkeeper in Switzerland, F&B Trainee in Marburg, Restaurant Manager and F&B Assistant in Neuss. For three years she gained valuable experience as Human Resources officer for a warehouse logistics company in Mönchengladbach before returning back to her roots in November 2021 by joining Konen & Lorenzen.

Fun Fact:  There is a punshing ball in the Yoga room.

Motto: Breathe in. Breathe out.

Lena Husemann joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in August 2021 and supports the F&B team as a Junior Consultant. She started her hospitality career in 2012 by joining the TRYP Dortmund Hotel as work and study program student.
After successfully completing her Bachelor in Business Administration in hotel and tourism management, she relocated from the Ruhr area to Rhineland. Prior to joining Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants Lena was working as reservation and guest service agent at the Sheraton Düsseldorf Airport Hotel.

Fun fact: good food, soccer, traveling

Motto: If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got. (Henry Ford)

Victoria had her enthusiasm for gastronomy whilst in the cradle, owing to her mother who managed her own restaurant and her father who is a hotel director. Very soon it was obvious that her way, after receiving the high-school diploma, should exactly lead to a place where many careers in the gastronomy start: She successfully completed her three-years-apprenticeship as Hotel Specialist with supplementary qualification in hotel management in the Hotel Traube Tonbach. Subsequently she joined the service brigade of the associated Restaurant Schwarzwaldstube. From here she felt inspired to move abroad. At first, she was able to achieve valuable experiences at the reception of an internationally reputable Castle Hotel in Ireland and improve her knowledge of the English language. Later she brought in her expertise in the Michelin-starred Restaurant “The Jane” in Antwerp and enjoyed the multilingual culture of Belgium. With her wealth of experience in top gastronomy, Victoria offers a valuable advantage for the consultation at Konen & Lorenzen, the team F&B Europe which she is supporting since June 2022.

Hobbies: Cooking and spending quality time with my dog.

Motto: accept or change!

Christoph Boll has been responsible for our Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants office in Switzerland since March 2016.

Having grown up in a family with a hospitality and catering background, it was only natural that Christoph choose to pursue his own career within the industry. After completing his apprenticeship as a chef, Christoph then gained extensive operational experience within some of the finest hotels and Michelin Star rated restaurants in Switzerland, Germany, UK and Monaco. These included prestigious addresses such as Mosimann’s and Mandarin Oriental, Hyde Park in London, Restaurant Tantris in Munich and the Grandhotel Victoria-Jungfrau in Interlaken. Following this he completed his studies as “Eidg. diplomierter Hotelier (CH)” at hotel management school in Zurich. During this time he continued to gain further practical experience, working at the Baur au Lac hotel in Zurich, and subsequently completed further training as “HR Fachmann mit eidg. Fachausweis (CH)” successfully. Christoph’s clients and applicants profit every day from his years of experience and his global network of contacts, which has been growing continuously since the beginning of his career.

Fun Fact: Sports, reading journals, listen to music.

Motto: Keep it simple.

Nora Bischof joined our Konen & Lorenzen Office in Switzerland in October 2017 as Recruiter/Team Assistant and is now supporting as Consultant.

The moment Nora passed her commercial education, she noticed that she missed something in her daily business: The contact to other people.
Thus Nora started as receptionist at the Seehotel Pilatus where she got a promotion to Assistant Front Office Manager later on. Additionally, Nora completed her professional bachelor in tourism management in 2016 and to expand her knowledge in the field of Human Resources she absolved the education to become a HR specialist with federal certificate in autumn 2022.

Fun Fact: She likes sports, travelling, skiing and spending time with her loved ones.

Motto: If you want it, you will find a way. If not, you will find a reason.

Janina Zimmermann has joined Konen & Lorenzen’s Swiss office as our new Junior Consultant effective June 2022.

Following her successful conclusion of her hotel apprenticeship in Stuttgart, Janina was able to acquire valuable experience in different food and beverage departments within the Hospitality industry and gained valuable skills in various F&B positions. From the beginning, she was inspired by the variety of responsibilities and contact with colleagues and guests alike. In 2016, Janina started her Bachelor of Arts in Hotel-and Restaurant Management at Heilbronn University and successfully completed her studies in March 2020. Her time spent as an undergraduate also included a semester abroad in Kuala Lumpur where she gained numerous new experiences. After graduation, Janina joined the Food & Beverage Management team of the Park Hotel Vitznau at Lake Lucerne in Switzerland. Janina was motivated to join the Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants team by the opportunity to combine her practical and theoretical knowledge.

Fun Fact: Photography, enjoying culinary delights, long walks with her dog

Motto: You can’t change the wind, but you can set the sails differently.

After finishing her degree as a hotel specialist at the Taschenbergpalais Kempinski Dresden, Carolin continued to work with the Kempinski Group in Malta and Switzerland where she gained experiences in different positions at the Front Office department. She was part of the pre – opening Team at the Kempinski Palace Engelberg before joining our K&L Team in Switzerland as a Team Assistant.

Fun Fact: reading, hiking, baking, watching football, traveling

Motto: Remember, you are the one who can fill the world with sunshine -Snow White

Sue Gan joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultant in 2022 based in Singapore.

Prior to joining the recruitment world, Sue had a colourful and energizing sales & marketing career in the hospitality industry across Asia. Never shying away from adventure, she explored outside of Singapore and took a big step leaving her comfort zone to accelerate her career in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Bangkok, Jakarta and Bali.

As a global citizen, Sue brings a wealth of local knowledge, professional experience, and valuable contacts across geographies and markets. She sees great potential in her colleagues and has had guided many colleagues in developing their career in the right direction. As a Director for North Asia,
Sue will focus on senior level searches for Greater China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan and the Indian Ocean.

In her new role, Sue provides the best support to clients and candidates to help ensure a right match.

Fun Fact: She enjoys exploring new places, new restaurants and bars

Motto: Never a dull moment!

Jacqueline Pensyl joined Konen & Lorenzen Recruitment Consultants in June 2022 overseeing the Southeast Asia region.

As the Director- Southeast Asia, she specialises in senior-level searches for clients in the area of Sales & Marketing, Finance, Human Resources, Food & Beverage and Rooms Division. Jacqueline is passionate in finding diamonds in the rough and strives for precision to provide best fit candidates to her clients.

Jacqueline started her hospitality career with Sutera Harbour Resort in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. She also worked for Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah and at the National Sales Office of Shangri-La’s Hotels and Resorts, Malaysia. Her portfolio also includes senior attachments with Holiday Inn Resort Penang, Melia Kuala Lumpur, most recently with Ibis Styles Kuala Lumpur Cheras, Silka Cheras Kuala Lumpur, YTL Hotels the Vistana (now known as AC Hotels) for Kuala Lumpur Titiwangsa and Penang Bukit Jambul and Hotel Istana Kuala Lumpur.

Her major work career spanned over 15 years of experience in the hospitality industry with significant focus on Sales and Marketing and a two year stint in Hotel operations. She also ventured into setting up her own Event Management company which ran for 8 years before returning to the Hotel Industry. Her overall strengths and passion for building relationships have proven essential in the success of her various career undertakings. She brings with her a wealth of experience and sound understanding of the hospitality industry with a passion to help others succeed in their careers.

Fun Fact : A quick de-stressing moment would be hanging out with my over 100 houseplants. When stressed, I need beach holidays and wine!

Motto : Time is Money

Sharala Nadarajah started at our Kuala Lumpur office as Administrative Assistant in October 2013 and works today as Consultant.

Prior to joining us and with a lifelong passion to serve people, she was a flight attendant at a well renowned airline in Malaysia. In 2006, Sharala graduated from the University of Malaysia with a BA of Arts in Media Studies (PR). Sharala is the heart of the office and she ensures administrative efficiency, consultant’s support as well as external communication with clients and candidates. Sharala is a dedicated, reliable and detailed oriented person. She has a wonderful disposition and treats everybody with utmost respect.

Fun Fact: She loves Indian classical dance and reading story books.

Motto: Live life to its fullest.