Digitalization
Vera Jakobsen
Head of Digital
Who are you and what is your job all about?
My name is Vera and I head the Digital staff department at Munich Airport. Together with a great team, I handle digital product and project management, data management & analytics, digital marketing, and innovation and partnering. Since no digital topic affects just one area, we work together with many other units and subsidiaries, manage the so-called «digital community» and are in regular communication with partners such as airlines and airports around the world.
«There will also be changes for employees: not only in the manner in which we work together, but also in the extent to which manual, repetitive tasks can be significantly simplified thanks to automation. This leaves more time for the really exciting topics.»
What is your background?
After my studies (communications, business administration, consumer affairs), I landed at the airport in 2013. Actually, I had only planned ten months for an internship and my master’s thesis. That has now grown into ten years, during which I have worked in Group strategy and sustainability management and lived through the «Corona years» as an advisor to the Executive Board. I have served in my current role since May 2022.
What kind of measures will Munich Airport be implementing in the near future in terms of digitalization?
Our agenda includes numerous and highly diverse digital projects in the thematic clusters of Aviation, Commercial & Marketing, Smart City, Business & Workplace, and Data & Analytics. Our passengers will be able to directly experience many things along the travel chain, for example, in terms of the information they are provided with, the check-in/security processes, customer service, or orientation. In our cooperation with our business partners, we are focusing on the joint optimization of operational processes, for example with the help of AI or increased data exchange.
There will also be changes for employees: not only in the manner in which we work together, but also in the extent to which manual, repetitive tasks can be significantly simplified thanks to automation. This leaves more time for the really exciting topics.
Are you also using more digital solutions in your private life or do you tend to «switch off» and seek a kind of analog compensation?
I would put it this way: I almost exclusively use digital tools to plan, book, and execute my analog compensation – in my case mostly mountain tours, sports, and travel. I travel a lot for business and pleasure and use digital tickets or identification methods whenever possible. If I have to bring or send a printout somewhere, it annoys me. That’s why I also switched insurance, banking, etc. to electronic mailboxes or app solutions.
What motivates you most about your job?
Most of all, it’s the variety of the topics and richness of perspectives! A colleague of mine recently commented that Munich Airport is «the biggest men’s playground in Bavaria». The topics and opportunities here are virtually unlimited, and not just reserved for male digitalizers, data geeks, and innovators. You can tackle so many areas and there is so much to do. Finally, there’s the airport family. Not only do we work together as colleagues, but great friendships have also developed.