vivenu welcomes Katja Sankowski as its first VP People

Düsseldorf, May 27, 2026 — vivenu welcomes Katja Sankowski as its first VP People. Katja brings over 20 years of HR experience, much of it spent building and scaling People functions inside high-growth companies. At vivenu, she will bring that expertise on the next stage of growth, attracting top talent and giving ambitious people the environment they need to do their best work.

As an experienced People & Organization leader, Katja is known for her hands-on approach to scaling HR structures during periods of rapid, international growth. Most recently, she served as Chief Human Resources Officer at tonies®, where she led the expansion of the People function through a phase of fast-paced global scaling. Before that, she built the HR infrastructure from the ground up as Head of HR at Surplex, one of Europe's leading industrial auction platforms, and strategically guided KFC's growth trajectory in Germany in a similar role. Across all of these positions, the overall focus was: scaling with intention and a culture built on performance and passion.

"At vivenu, Katja will continue building out our People function, ensuring we scale with focus, operational excellence, and high standards at the core. Her strategic mindset and depth of expertise will be instrumental as we move into our next stage of growth," said Simon Hennes, CEO of vivenu.

vivenu is currently expanding across multiple verticals and markets simultaneously. As we grow across Europe and North America, our ticketing platform has become the backbone of some of the world's most respected live event brands. At this stage, managing HR structures is no longer enough. What's needed is strategic leadership that aligns business goals, organizational scaling, and team culture, all at once. That is exactly what Katja brings.

"An exceptional product is driven by an exceptional team. My mission as vivenu's first VP People is to foster an agile, high-performance culture that attracts, empowers, and retains the best talent. Over my first few weeks, I have experienced firsthand the strong capability and drive within our global team. Moving forward, my focus is on scaling these organizational foundations, ensuring vivenu remains best positioned to deliver consistent value and innovative solutions for our customers," said Katja Sankowski.

About vivenu

vivenu is the technology leader in global event ticketing, offering a flexible, modern platform that adapts seamlessly to the brands, distribution strategies, and business needs of event organizers. Built API-first for performance, flexibility, and full customization, the platform powers demanding event setups around the world. With offices across Europe and North America, vivenu supports 1,000+ organizers in 50+ countries — including FC Schalke 04, the Grammy Awards, HYROX, and Stanford Athletics.

Founded in Düsseldorf in 2018, vivenu today employs more than 150 people across six locations: Düsseldorf, Darmstadt, New York, Paris, Zurich, and Tampa. The teams at vivenu are rethinking what ticketing can be: technically ambitious, internationally minded, and close to the customers who run some of the world's most iconic live event brands.

Open roles and more at vivenu.com/careers.

Press inquiries to media@vivenu.com.