Sodexo UK & Ireland has announced the appointment of Bill Buchan as HR Director, as the leader in sustainable food and valued experiences continues to drive growth in the region.
With strong experience in building, developing and engaging high performing teams across different countries, Bill’s appointment comes at an exciting time for the region and is anticipated to play a key role in driving ever-greater service excellence amongst teams working on client sites and ensuring the organisation has the right talent to support its continuing growth. Bill will join the UK & Ireland regional leadership team, while maintaining his role within Sodexo’s global HR leadership team.
Bill joined Sodexo in 2009 as HR Director for Health & Care in the UK and Ireland, before progressing onto various senior global HR roles within Sodexo, his last role being Senior Vice President for Sodexo’s global HR operations, where he was responsible for the HR strategy through to the execution of strategic HR projects.
Before joining Sodexo, Bill held a number of HR positions in the UK and internationally with organisations including BAE Systems, Airbus and BG Group.
On his new role Bill said: “I am looking forward to meeting our people in client sites around the country. Their commitment and service excellence is the key to Sodexo’s success. To be the employer we strive to be, we need to ensure we understand their needs and support them to thrive. In the UK and Ireland, we have some fantastic initiatives that support our people and to open doors for individuals to find meaningful employment opportunities and I look forward to driving this further.”
Sodexo is committed to ensuring all employees have a positive work life experience, building an inclusive culture and providing enhanced benefits that offer support during all life’s important moments. Its employee value proposition is focused on creating clear progression plans for employees and implementing recognition programmes that celebrate achievement across the business.
Sodexo is proud to have been named on the 2024 Times Top 50 Employers for Gender Equality and last November won the Employer Brand title at the inaugural People Awards receiving recognition for its authenticity, ensuring that the employee proposition it offers to new recruits is also experienced by every existing team member.
As part of the People pathway of its Social Impact Pledge 2030, Sodexo has committed to prioritising social mobility by expanding access to apprenticeships, supporting individuals with criminal convictions into sustainable employment, and helping veterans, reservists, and military families secure meaningful job opportunities. In October 2024 Sodexo was the first in its industry to be included in the top 75 of the 2024 Social Mobility Employer Index, which assesses and ranks UK employers on their actions to break down barriers to employment opportunities and improve socioeconomic diversity in the workplace.
Jean Renton, COO Sodexo UK & Ireland added: “We are delighted to welcome Bill back to the UK & Ireland as our new HR Director. As a service provider, everything we do is powered by our people, they are the lifeblood of our organisation and with such a wide array of job roles across the business – from porters to chefs and engineers to prison custody officers – ensuring they feel valued is crucial to our continued success.
“Bill has driven the people strategy in a number of different countries, his passion for supporting our colleagues is evident in everything he has achieved. We look forward to working with Bill to ensure our people have a sense of belonging, that they can act with purpose and thrive in their career with us.”
