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Flat Iron’s HR leader Gina Knight: ‘People teams can be an enabler of growth, results and performance’
Forget the spreadsheets, it’s people that drive performance, says the award-winning people leader and guest speaker at this year’s People Summit
As head of people at fast-growing steakhouse chain Flat Iron, Gina Knight balances business performance with humanity.
She is passionate about coaching individuals and supporting them to build their confidence, a skill that helped her win Head Office Impact at last year’s Be Inclusive Hospitality’s (BIH) fourth BIH Spotlight Awards.
Knight, who has almost 20 years’ experience in the industry, is speaking at this year’s People Summit about how people leaders can build roles that are not only valued but clearly connected to business needs, to protect teams in times of economic uncertainty.
You entered the sector in 2008. In your almost 20 years in the industry, would you say now is the hardest environment for HR leaders to navigate?
It’s the only industry I’ve ever worked in, but there have been times where I’ve networked with people outside of the industry and the themes I see are that hospitality employs a large number of people on lower salaries, so what’s happening on a macro perspective tends to hit harder.
When you have more people, the resources you use are really important, but equally, the budgets aren’t generous. So all the levers you can pull as a HR leader to support your teams – from benefits to salaries – are thinner than what you would find in other industries.
I find this industry requires a lot of agility, creative thinking and innovation because the challenges that hit it are hard, but I think that’s why I stay in it: it’s fast-paced and rewarding. No day is the same and there’s always a problem to think about and overcome.
What would you say is the best thing about the sector?
It’s very people-rich and can be very rewarding. You can genuinely change people’s lives through enabling them to develop and grow.
I’m proof of that. I started in hospitality at about the age of 15, with no A levels and in a role that paid £5.50 an hour, and I’ve managed to make a career out of that and a role as head of people.
I didn’t go to university, I didn’t have that traditional career path, but hospitality allows for that – neurodivergent thinkers, people who haven’t academically had the same start, people from different backgrounds – it allows them to get their foot in the door and have an opportunity they wouldn’t have had elsewhere.
Your session at the People Summit is called ‘Building invincible roles’. Can you tell me more about that?
The industry requires people teams to lead with agility and my session is around the mindset that people leaders need to adopt to do that. People teams can be an enabler of growth, results and performance, and when you identify how your people team can do that, it enables you to understand the things you can do that matter.
Tech can help this. Playing around with spreadsheets is non-value-added stuff that is not going to help drive performance or growth. Instead, realising that technology can reduce the background noise so that you can focus on the things that matter is key.
An example of this is succession planning, promoting people internally, which is something an AI bot cannot do. It takes intention and it takes people to do that because it requires empathy, curiosity and drive. What AI bots can do is give you good data, which enables you to have good coaching conversations and to work smarter so you’re more time-efficient. It’s about using tech to enable you to do the human things that really matter in helping a business to succeed.
What are you looking forward to most during the People Summit?
I always enjoy the sharing of information. We’re all in the same boat, but our mindsets, our approaches and the way we do things are very different. I’m looking forward to some diversity in thought to challenge my thinking. If I walk away with one new perspective on the people landscape, that’s a win for me.
Learn more about how to take care of your people at The Caterer’s People Summit
Hear more from Gina Knight at the People Summit, where she will chair a session with tips on performance and risk reduction in businesses, along with a host of other sessions on subjects ranging from ChatGPT hacks to how to become a Best Place to Work in Hospitality.
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