New Managing Director

The Austrian Ice Hockey Federation’s head office in Vienna is, on the one hand, the centre of expertise for Austrian ice hockey as the sport’s governing body (national teams, training, recruitment etc.) and, on the other, the service provider for all Austrian ice hockey – for regional associations, clubs, players, coaches and officiating.

"Ultimately, we must run the Federation like a business that operates effectively and efficiently, with a focus on service and customers. By appointing Friedrich Nikolaus as the new Managing Director, we have taken a first step towards pursuing a sound financial path in the years ahead," explains President Dr Klaus Hartmann.

To achieve this, it is necessary to structure the head office accordingly in order to use the available financial resources cost-consciously and deploy them as effectively as possible to promote and develop Austrian ice hockey. With Nikolaus, who can look back on many years of experience in the Austrian banking sector (see CV), the ÖEHV now has a genuine finance and management professional at its side.

Why can someone who, in good Austrian parlance, has "no idea" about ice hockey do this job? President Dr Hartmann: "Running a business requires different skills from coaching an ice hockey team. Through his work on the boards of various banks, Nikolaus has the professional experience that the ÖEHV lacked and that we, as those responsible for the Federation, had been seeking."

The new Managing Director’s first tasks will be to draw up the budget plan for 2021 and carry out an analysis of the head office’s current organisational and staffing structure, as well as to establish contact with regional associations, clubs, leagues and public bodies. Nikolaus, a father of three who lives in Lower Austria, approaches his new role neutrally and without preconceptions: "I look forward to putting my experience to date to work for Austrian ice hockey. My motto has always been: it is better to talk to one another than about one another."