I’m Frances Gillespie, founder of Frances Gillespie HR.

I was very blessed to grow up in a beautiful spot in Donegal before heading to Uni in Dublin which was just the best time. I later worked in the National Gallery in Dublin for several years before London beckoned and I moved here on a career break which never ended. In London I was at the Tate at first, working in The Tattershall Castle on the river in the evenings to make ends meet.

Then I decided to flip career into hospitality as it just felt the natural thing to do. I just loved it – the fast pace, the fun and the people. I decided that I had found a career for life. Working my way up a well-trodden path of front-line service then onto pub and restaurant management, I then went on to take that knowledge into training and developing others, moving through the stages (and exams!) to become Head of HR in three Pub Companies. I worked for several years in each, helping them grow, building great management teams and honing my ability to solve people situations.

In 2013 I could see hospitality management were frustrated and constrained by employee situations where they couldn't find a way through, and I knew I could make a real difference. So, having completed a master’s degree in HR at the University of Westminster, I decided to take a leap of faith and set up my consultancy.

Today I have a broad range of clients, Hotels, Pubs, Restaurants, Coffee Companies, Breweries and more recently a Day Nursery Chain. As they say, the rest is history.

Learn more about Frances Gillespie HR.