Women of Swarovski - Susanne Kremsner

Tell us about your path – how did you get to where you are? 

I specialized in marketing at university, then spent a decade working at IBM where I took on various roles, including Marketing Manager. This experience taught me a lot about international business and professional sales management. However, I still felt that something was missing. 

When I saw that Swarovski was looking for a Regional Manager for CEE/Scandinavia, I knew it was my dream job – even though I was in a different industry. I started with Swarovski in January 2009 and ever since, my passion for the company has only grown stronger. I love how Swarovski embodies growth, continuous progress, and Daniel Swarovski’s founding philosophy of "always improve the good things." In my first role with Swarovski, I was responsible for overseeing several countries, and really enjoyed looking for the right locations to build a profitable business. I have always well supported by my team and by management enabling  me to balance my career with raising two children. Currently, I am a Key Account Manager for bigger distribution partners, travel retail, and corporate gift accounts in Eastern Europe and Africa. 

Describe a challenge you had to overcome to get where you are? 

I am sharing something personal as I want to motivate other women to not give up on their careers even if they want to start a family. My job role is particularly challenging due to the necessity of traveling to different markets. I seriously underestimated the impact having children would have on my work. However, with a lot of flexibility from my family and managers and by embarking on short but regular business trips I was able to continue my job. 

What is one piece of advice, or lesson you’ve learned, that you would like to share with us?

Emotional intelligence is as important as professional know-how. One of the biggest lessons I‘ve learned is the importance of having a positive mindset towards your job, tasks, and the people you’re engaging with. If you have good relationships and a kind heart you can better showcase your knowledge and skills. I also believe that having goals motivates you to create opportunities. For instance, when people ask for my help, I eagerly assist, driven by a desire to contribute outside my official responsibilities. A willingness to help and be proactive paves the way for new possibilities. It has resulted in good things that I wasn’t even expecting.