Emma Simpson
Group People Director, Gleneagles & Estelle
Emma’s career began in hospitality, securing a place on Starwood Hotels and Resorts’ graduate programme and developing her leadership skills across a range of operational and commercial roles working for Starwood, Mandarin Oriental and Ian Schrager.
A move into financial services – initially to support the design of the operating model and launch of the £400M RBS Group’s global headquarters and the creation and management of the RBS Business School – led to the unintentional discovery of her true calling in People & Culture.
A series of senior leadership roles in talent management followed, including senior leadership roles in RBS and for the FTSE35 company SSE plc, with a focus on building strategic capabilities, increasing the readiness of executive talent, improving organisational effectiveness, and executive coaching.
Emma was appointed to her current role at Gleneagles in 2019. Having steered a five-year strategy and change programme to transform the people experience and organisational culture, Emma has established a highly respected people function at the centre of the business. Her success has led to a host of awards, including the Employer of the Year Award at the 2024 Cateys, the Leading with Kindness Award at the HR Network National Awards 2023 and HR Director of the Year in 2024.
An MSc Business Psychology graduate, Emma sits on the Advisory Boards of industry charity Springboard and UK Hospitality, to improve career opportunities for young people, including those facing long-term unemployment, and to support industry reforms.