The team is in place. The oven stays off. Costs keep mounting.
In 2025, I was involved in a hotel project whose opening had to be postponed repeatedly, at considerable cost. Staff had already been hired, but essential conditions for commencing operations were still missing.
Two examples among numerous significant problems
The installed kitchen cables had an insufficient conductor cross-section for the electrical load required by the planned equipment. Circuit protection was also inadequate. As a result, the equipment could not be connected as planned, and the kitchen could not be safely brought into operation. Construction work had also obstructed the ventilation of the cold rooms, affecting their cooling performance.
These were just two examples of numerous significant technical and fit-out problems preventing the opening. My responsibility extended to resolving issues across construction, technical systems, and hotel operations.
My contribution to resolving the problems
I worked through the disputed issues with the project manager, electrical contractor, and kitchen installation company. I mediated between the parties and resolved discrepancies in the operator’s interests. My decisions took account of the planned opening, the financial consequences of further delays, and the employees who had already been hired.
Hospitality expertise with a strong understanding of construction and technical systems
The problems described were resolved. Central to my contribution was the ability to connect technical questions with their operational and financial consequences.
I take responsibility for resolving complex problems that span multiple disciplines and require decisions beyond individual areas of responsibility. As a hospitality executive with a strong understanding of construction and technical systems, I recognize how planning, fit-out, and organization affect the entire hotel operation. My earlier work in the trades gives me the grounding to discuss execution with project managers and specialist contractors on an informed basis.
In this project, that combination helped me assess conflicting statements, represent the operator’s requirements in concrete terms, and move stalled discussions toward decisions. Whether an issue arose from construction, technical systems, or organization did not define the boundary of my responsibility. My remit included, among other responsibilities, resolving numerous significant issues across the project, with a focus on the hotel’s operational readiness and the operator’s interests.
For the operator, what matters is turning different professional perspectives into a workable solution. That is the responsibility I took on in this project.
Operational responsibility begins before the first guest arrives
A hotel opening requires this operational responsibility well before the first guest arrives. Technical execution, fit-out, and operating procedures need to work together. Issues left unresolved at these interfaces become a burden for the operator and the team.
Through ALTA MIRA, I bring this experience to pre-openings, reopenings, and demanding transitions. I assume operational leadership responsibility, resolve conflicts between project participants, and drive decisions that move the operation forward.
If significant problems across construction, technical systems, and operations are delaying your opening, please contact me directly.
The comics illustrate this anonymized case.
Stephan Waechter · ALTA MIRA · Hospitality & Executive Advisory