Case Studies

This section contains inspirational case studies and soundbites from women who have built a successful career in the hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism sector.

Click the links below to read the full case studies:

• Avril Owton MBE - Owner, The Cloud Hotel
• Alison Gilmore- General Manager, Barcelo Blackpool Imperial Hotel
• Esther O'Halloran, HR Director and Interim MD at Paul UK Ltd.
• Holly Addison-Grocock - Co-Founder and Joint Managing Director, Addison Fowle
• Liz Hartstone - Managing Director, Profile
• Natalie Canavan - Front of House Manager, Victory Services Club
• Sally Prescott - Learning and Development Manager, Jumeirah Carlton Tower
• Teresa Wong - Executive Assistant Manager, Swissotel The Howard, London
• Vicky Reddish - Human Resources Manager, Crowne Plaza Nottingham Hotel

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Esther O'Halloran, HR Director, PAUL UK

Esther has worked with the French artisan bakery chain since 2006 and last year was shortlisted for HR Director of the Year in 2009. She is one of the country's most accomplished HR professionals in hospitality. Prior to joining Paul UK, Esther set up the HR functions in Eat Ltd and was Head of Resourcing at Pret A Manger.

What is your secret to success?

Be confident in your decisions, even if you make a mistake it is better to learn something of value for the next time. More importantly be yourself; never try to mould yourself into someone you are not as this will always come out in the end. Finally focus on the results you want to achieve and be passionate in how you approach your work/career as this passion and enthusiasm will have a positive affect on how others see you.

What should women do to take their careers in hospitality to the next level?

You never know what the next role may lead to, so try and do more than is asked of you. Always approach each job with the intention of learning something from it, so that you can take the experience with you wherever you go, whether it is a positive or a negative experience. Show compassion and determination in equal measures and never give up on your own goal and deliver what you say you will.

Avril Owton MBE, Owner, The Cloud Hotel

Avril is an inspiration to everyone. A former professional dancer with The Tiller Girls, Avril took over the running of the hotel when her husband died suddenly at the age of 45, leaving her with an ailing family hotel, four children and no life insurance or mortgage protection. In 2006 Avril was awarded the Shine Awards Woman of the Year and Hampshire Businesswoman of the Year. She was awarded a MBE in 2008 for her services to charity and outstanding business skills.

What is your secret to success?

Hard work, perseverance, the determination to succeed and have an attitude of never giving up! I have learnt that one of the most important rules in business is that if you want to succeed so must tell the world about it. Something I used to find difficult because like so many women I lacked confidence, but I have discovered that if you hide your talents, you will never succeed and success brings you rewards and empowers you. I also recognised that customer service is the key to success in the industry and to be able to provide that, you need excellent staff to support you and you need to retain them. We have staff who have been working for 18 years and have grown with me, all working towards a common goal.

What should women do to take their careers in hospitality to the next level?

This is a difficult one because it is a male dominated industry with long unsociable hours. It is very difficult for young women with families to commit to these long hours. My advice to women in the industry is to believe in themselves. Have the confidence to apply for a promotion. It takes a long time and a lot of hard work to become an overnight success, but if you give up you will never know what you might have achieved. Always know your subject and have confidence in your beliefs.

Stay feminine and don't become aggressive, don't try and be better than the men just try and be a better woman in business. Take every opportunity that comes your way, get up, dress up and show up so people get to know you. Always look your best because it creates a good positive image. Network and always appear enthusiastic and never stop learning. Knowledge is definitely power and I really do believe that a positive attitude creates positive results.

Teresa Wong, Executive Assistant Manager, Swissôtel The Howard, London

Teresa is the second in command of London's five star luxury Swissôtel The Howard overlooking the Thames. Hong Kong born, Australian Teresa Wong has been in the hospitality sector for over 20 years. In those 20 years she has worked and lived in more than 10 cities around the globe. This year she won a Shine Award for the corporate category.

What is your secret to success?

Stay focussed, work smart, persevere, handle setbacks and always seize new opportunities when they arise. No two days are the same in the hotel. I usually start my day by walking through the hotel and greet everyone along the way. My job has a lot to do with strategic planning and translate our strategy into operational terms, making sure that our plans make sense and it is easy for the team to follow through.

What should women do to take their careers in hospitality to the next level?

Women possess a sense of intuition in how to read the tone of the environment. I would use the analogy of an iron fist in a silk glove, we need to possess a firm, yet fair hand, otherwise in a challenging business environment we won't survive.

Natalie Bickford, HR Director, Sodexo

Natalie joined Sodexo in 2008 as HR director for UK and Ireland. She began her career as a graduate trainee at Barclays Bank, where she developed an interest in the relationships with customers and trying to understand their needs. She was drafted into the HR change programme at Barclays and ran the graduate development programme for the corporate bank. From Barclays, Natalie joined the Kingfisher retail group. She then spent two years as the UK HR director at AstraZeneca before joining Sodexo.

What is the secret to your success?

I have always pushed and challenged myself to try new things and take on more responsibility. Often I have found myself in roles where I haven't had lots of previous experience to rely on and worry that I will not do a good job. Luckily I have found that by putting myself in unfamiliar situations, I have had no option but to get on, make decisions and deliver the results that are being asked of me. I also put a lot of effort into building good relationships with everybody around me and find that I am then able to pull on other people's support when tackling something new and unfamiliar.

What should women do to take their careers in hospitality to the next level?

Women should focus on what they are good at - the skills that they employ both at work and in their home lives and build their confidence levels. Research suggests that in general, women will not apply for a job unless they believe that they meet all of the criteria outlined in the advert or specification about the person a company is looking to employ. Most men however will apply if they feel that they meet just some of the requirements. Women should push themselves to the front, take calculated risks and share their ideas and opinions more. Take the job and then learn as you go!

Alison Gilmore, General Manager of The Barceló Blackpool Imperial Hotel

Alison is one of eight female managers at Barceló. She began at The Barceló Cardiff Angel Hotel as an Operations Manager and the training she underwent was aimed at helping her become a GM. She earned the title Barceló GM of the Year in 2004.

What is your secret to success?

There's no secret! We're in a fickle business with an ever changing market and ever increasing expectations from our guests. Always put yourself in your guest's shoes, treat your colleagues and your team as you would wish to be treated, love your property, and embrace all that's great about your location!

What should women do to take their careers to the next level?

I'm lucky that my job has a strong social side and networking is a natural and enjoyable part of my role. Not only is it fun, it's essential for attracting business, making friends and keeping up to date with both the industry and local news. Although it's not always easy, staying in touch with colleagues and mentors from previous roles has been crucial to my own progression.