Cindy Schnabel will assume the position of COO at the FTI GROUP's last-minute tour operator as of 1 November 2018 and, together with Sabine Prähauser (CEO) and Martin Hauschild (CFO), will complete the “top three”.
The management trio of the last-minute specialist 5vorFlug is fully in place in time for the 2018/19 financial year: Cindy Schnabel will fill the vacancy of COO from 1 November 2018. Together with Sabine Prähauser (CEO) and Martin Hauschild (CFO), she will be responsible for the tour operator's operational management under the two managing directors Richard Reindl and Torsten Lampe. In her position, Schnabel will be responsible for the operational processes and the service team. "We are very pleased that we were able to fill the position of COO from our own ranks with Cindy Schnabel. She has got to know and helped shape the processes within the FTI GROUP in various positions, including the last two years as Operations Manager at 5vorFlug," explains Torsten Lampe. "With a highly motivated team under the responsibility of the 5vorFlug management trio consisting of Sabine Prähauser, Martin Hauschild and Cindy Schnabel, we see ourselves as ideally equipped for the new business year", Lampe continued. At the beginning of July 2018, the last-minute specialist announced this year's booking record, which was also the day with the highest bookings since the tour operator was founded.
Cindy Schnabel has been working for the FTI GROUP since 2013 and was initially employed there as Flight Manager at FTI Touristik in the Revenue and Pricing division. As Operations Manager at 5vorFlug, she was responsible for process optimisation, including the introduction of new online payment systems. Before joining FTI the trained travel agent studied tourism and worked for Lufthansa in the area of revenue management as well as for a New Zealand tourism company.
Sabine Prähauser from Munich joined the FTI GROUP in 1999 immediately after her studies to become a tourism specialist. She has been with 5vorFlug since 2005. Before the expert was appointed CEO of the tour operator in March 2018, she was most recently in charge of product development in the position of Senior Product Manager and was responsible for the areas of revenue & pricing, risk management, sales development and marketing.
Martin Hauschild has been a co-managing director of BigXtra since 2012 and will continue to be responsible for sales and finance. Previously, the business graduate was CFO at Travel Viva AG. He has also held various management positions at Otto Freizeit und Touristik, Reiseland, Otto Reisen and Travel Overland.