Kao Data_ESG Report 25-26_SP - Flipbook - Page 31
Introduction
Environmental
Social Sustainability
Governance
Can you tell us more about your path into
the data centre industry?
How do you approach your role as Chief People
Of昀椀cer at Kao Data?
My path into this industry wasn’t a straight line, and I think
that’s actually been an advantage. My background in HR
turned out to be a great launchpad into the data centre
industry where I 昀椀rst cut my teeth as HR Business Partner
Director for the UK and HQ at Interxion. This role, which
lasted over 昀椀ve years, covered everything from employee
relations and performance management to compensation
review and organisational compliance. After Interxion I
joined Digital Realty in a Director, HR Business Partner role
for UK and HQ EMEA.
I joined Kao Data as Chief People Of昀椀cer in March 2024.
At Kao Data, I have the opportunity to shape our people
strategy as part of the executive leadership team, ensuring
our approach to talent, culture, wellbeing, diversity and
inclusion supports both our employees and the longterm success of the business. I am also a big believer in
accountability sitting with leadership, not just with HR.
Real progress happens when it shows up in how we design
roles, how we run interviews and how we develop people,
not just in a policy document sitting on a shelf.
Every one of my career roles has added a layer to my
strategic lens: recruitment taught me how to 昀椀nd people,
while HR business partnering at Interxion and Digital Realty
taught me how to keep and grow them at scale, inside two
of the biggest names in the data centre sector.
How do you approach social impact and DE&I at
Kao Data?
What do you bring to Kao Data from your
previous roles?
During my time at Digital Realty I was able to build
out talent acquisition and retention approaches, put
performance management systems in place, and lead change
management through a number of organisational transitions.
I also leaned heavily into HR analytics during that time, using
data to actually drive decisions rather than just report on
what had already happened. We saw real improvements in
employee satisfaction and retention as a result, and it’s this
analytical approach that I draw on at Kao Data today.
Early on in my career I quickly became aware of the critical
role people play in the success of any industry, instilling in
me a strong belief in pipeline thinking rather than quick
昀椀xes. Creating opportunities for people, investing in future
talent and fostering an inclusive culture are therefore
fundamental to building a resilient and sustainable
organisation. For me this means that DE&I isn’t a separate
workstream sitting next to the people strategy – it is the
people strategy.
How do we tackle the data centre skills shortage?
Data centres have historically drawn from a narrow pool
of talent, largely engineering and technical backgrounds,
and largely male. In recruitment you learn fast that you
can’t solve a shortage by trying harder to 昀椀nd the same ten
people everyone else is chasing. Widening that pool isn’t
just the right thing to do; it’s a practical necessity to meet
the skills gap in a sector growing as fast as this one. This
means we have to go further upstream, into schools, into
career changers, reaching people who’ve never considered
this industry because no one’s ever put it in front of them.
That mindset is exactly what informs the work of The Kao
Academy, our Critical Careers programme and the goals of
our award-winning Community Impact Strategy.
What makes an effective Chief People Of昀椀cer?
Great question. I would say genuine commercial 昀氀uency.
You have to understand the business well enough to sit in
the same conversations as the CEO or the CFO, not just
represent ‘the people side’ of the discussion. A great people
strategy must 昀氀ex around the 昀椀nancial realities, not sit apart
from them.
Beyond that, I think it’s honesty and steadiness. Some of the
most important conversations I have are dif昀椀cult ones, and
the ones that build the most trust are the ones where I’ve
been direct rather than diplomatic for the sake of it. That’s
something I learned early, sitting in disciplinary hearings and
dif昀椀cult employee relations conversations, long before it was
a boardroom conversation.
Finally, I would say curiosity – I am a 昀椀rm believer that every
day is a school day. The best people leaders I know never
assume they’ve seen it all. Every business, every team, has
its own texture, and you have to be willing to keep learning
it rather than applying the same playbook everywhere. That’s
what makes my role so exciting, and why I am so proud of
what we are achieving at Kao Data for our people and
our stakeholders.
Read more about: Critical Careers
Kao Data ESG Report 2025-26
31
