“At that moment, you release so much adrenaline that you just carry on,” says ISS facilities technician Stephan Kuster. The reason for the release of this stress hormone in such a calm and level-headed professional was a fire at a client’s commercial premises. Stephan Kuster is the winner of the ISS Apple Award 2023.
You can watch the report in the video or read the short version below.
September 21, 2022. A busy day in the shopping district near Zurich. Stephan Kuster is working in the workshop in the late afternoon when he is startled by an alarm on his mobile receiver. “Code 1000” is displayed in large letters. The code indicates a fire somewhere in the massive commercial building. Without hesitation, the building technician runs to the fire protection system’s sub-panel, located very close to the workshop: “There, I saw in which fire compartment the fire had broken out.”
A sales associate at the client’s store is the first to notice the smell of smoke and informs her supervisor. His top priority is to get all employees and customers out of the danger zone. The entire building is evacuated. A short time later, Stephan Kuster arrives at the source of the fire and finds that it is already “burning fiercely.”
Armed with a hand-held fire extinguisher, the ISS technician immediately sets about containing the fire. At the same time, the client alerts the fire department. The ISS facility technician doesn’t hesitate for a second to consider that his actions are dangerous: “At that moment, you’re pumping out so much adrenaline that you just function.” He also felt very confident in his actions: “I knew exactly how I had to react.”
By the time the emergency responders arrived on the scene, the fire had already been extinguished. Stephan Kuster’s intervention was not only bold and courageous, but also highly effective and successful. The next day, the store was already open for business as usual.
Looking back, everyone involved agreed that without Stephan Kuster, the situation certainly wouldn’t have turned out so well. It’s praise that seems to make Stephan Kuster almost a little uncomfortable: “First of all, it’s my job. And second, it’s just who I am. I could never have walked away from it. I’m employed as a building technician. If someone asks if I can help, I’m more than happy to do so.”
Stephan Kuster still does that today. Since the beginning of this year, he’s been working for another ISS client, and they’re very happy to have a technical maintenance technician who’s there when needed. Reliable, unflappable, and always committed to the customer’s well-being. Or, to put it in Stephan Kuster’s own words: “You never get bored.”
Tanja Aebi, Director of People & Culture at ISS Switzerland, presents Stephan Kuster with the ISS Apple Award at the Swiss Leadership Conference in January 2023.
About the ISS Apple Award
Appreciation and recognition for exceptional performance are an important part of ISS’s corporate culture. The Apple Award is at the heart of this appreciation. Placemakers - those who contribute to the success of ISS clients through outstanding performance and ease their daily workload so they can focus on their core tasks - are honored with the Apple Star Pin. In 2022, 157 of ISS’s 12,000 employees across Switzerland were honored with an Apple Star Pin. An annual winner is then selected from among the quarterly winners.