Five minutes with Klaus Krammer

Tell us about yourself

Born and raised in Styria, I started my career within the TPA Group in Romania. In doing so, I found out that I like to work abroad and discover new languages and cultures. After working for more than eight years in Romania, I took the opportunity to move to Bratislava and become a Partner at TPA Slovakia responsible for outsourcing projects and digitalisation.

Do you work only within Slovakia?

I also have relations with Austrian business, as Bratislava is very close to Vienna and only a few kilometres away from the Austrian border, I realised how similar the approaches and attitudes of the people living in Vienna and Bratislava are. It is nice to see how the so-called twin cities (the distance between Vienna and Bratislava is only 60 kilometres) have become closer and closer, and as of 2023 the time it will take to travel by train between Bratislava and Vienna will be only 45 minutes.

Tell us one thing you learnt during the COVID-19 lockdown/pandemic?

Home-office works with the help of digitalisation (e.g. video conferences), it works but isn't ideal as a permanent status. I found out how much I like to go to the office and meet clients and colleagues in person Vs only interacting via screens.

Tell us about a moment that shaped your career?

I saw a job position in a newspaper that TPA Group was looking for an Austrian tax advisor in Bucharest. At the time my sister and her family lived there and I thought this could be an interesting move for me. In the end, this was the starting point of my career to work and live abroad.

So far in your career, what’s been the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome?

COVID was no doubt a big challenge as the borders within Europe were closed. This development made me personally sad, as I see myself as a European citizen and not being able to travel between the countries without restrictions was difficult for me. But as COVID begins to ease and borders re-open I relish the opportunity to once again travel across this great European continent.

How do you see the future of the accounting industry changing?

The future is digitalisation and artificial intelligence shall become a very important employee within professional services firms. Those who don't effectively embrace this will fall behind. It needs to be one of the top priorities for accounting firms to ensure they are future-ready.

Get to know us in five minutes

 

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