Maxime Riviera – Introducing Students to New Learning Paths

Location – Metzggasse 9, 3920 Zermatt, Switzerland

Website http://www.alpine-ski-school.com/

Contact +41 79 136 05 54


1. Kindly brief us in short about you and your journey since the beginning of your career.

A hospitality professional, passionate about experiential tourism with a background in linguistics and still a student of digital marketing.

2. How do you use technology in the classroom?

In our School, we mainly use Computers, Phones, and related technology media. WhatsApp’s client application runs on mobile devices and can be accessed from computers. WhatsAppWeb as internationally freeware is the cross-platform we use the most, that allows users to send text and voice messages, make voice and video calls, and share images, documents, user locations, and other content. The platform allows us to be always connected with all the Instructors during their working day around the Resort (with logistic function) and with all the customers both during the booking process (as customer service and info point ) and during their ski lessons (with operational and support function).

3. What has been one of your greatest contributions to the institution you have worked in for their development?

My professional profile is characterized by strong leadership. I do think that the most profitable contribution was to use those skills to influence and guide others to achieve common goals

4. Please tell us about your organization in brief.

The headquarters of our ski school, located near the Church in a traditional Valais Chalet in the center of Zermatt, is where we welcome every year a large international clientele of skiers of all levels and curious novices. Our team of winter sports instructors is carefully selected from the best resources in the Swiss, Italian, and French Alps and they come from all over Europe. Our goal is to make the winter experiences of our customers unique and unforgettable, customizing the snow experience to meet the demands of our customers with a tailor-made lesson concept.

5. How have you dealt with challenges, and what are some ways you have resolved them?

Challenges are my daily bread when it comes to new professional adventures and solving problems is my main task, being precise and carefully focused is what helps me not to lose control in times of high pressure.

The advice is: BREATHE

6. What motivates you?

To observe the scenery that the Alps and our Totem “The Matterhorn” give us every day throughout the year, the magnificent landscape of the beautiful Swiss valleys takes your breath away at every glance. Being able to communicate this to our customers, making them feel welcome and at home once in Zermatt, is exactly what motivates me/us.

7. Who has most influenced you to become an administrator, and how did they influence you?

The passion and deep knowledge of the mountain of our Director, the desire to communicate, through the teaching of these disciplines, and the love for the territory and for the students, have deeply influenced my professional choices. Managing a ski school in the Swiss Alps allows me to get in touch with Snow Masters from all over Europe and to learn and observe with admiration the different approaches that each of them uses to teach the basics of winter sports. This fascinates me and helps me coordinate the school even better taking into account every small aspect of character and aptitude so as to be able to create the final match between teacher and customer and obtain the maximum possible result in terms of personal satisfaction, customers satisfaction and Instructors professional growth and, of course, satisfaction.

8. What are your professional goals for the next 5-10 years?

The professional goals for the next 5/10 years are:

1. Build a solid team of motivated professionals made up of the best winter sports coaches.

2. Working in synergy with each other and with the local community, creating a circular economy focused on sustainability.

3. Undeniable expansion project, so as to be present on the Alpine ridges of all Switzerland with 2 new branches 🙂

4. Give importance to the digitalization of the company to keep up with technological trends and meet the requirements of web customers.

9. What message would you like to portray the student universally?

Learning a new discipline enriches the body and soul, it keeps your mind awake and responsive. The main suggestion is to never stop pursuing your goals by learning not to suffer from the collapse of expectations. It is important to not feel guilty when a learning journey interrupts, on the contrary, to take a new path of learning that makes you feel alive.

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