Jens is passionate about the casual dining industry and his vision for the Heart with Smart Group (HwS) is to develop an organisation of successful businesses that enable social mobility. Jens joined Pizza Hut UK from Yum! as Managing Director in 2009. He led the Rutland’s buyout in 2012 and the Management buyout from Rutland in 2018.
Prior to Pizza Hut, Jens held several positions within Yum! including General Manager for the KFC business in Germany and The Netherlands, and CFO for KFC UK with extensive experience of managing both small and large Franchisee operations. Jens has also worked for Nestle and McKinsey across several countries. Jens holds a Masters in Economics, and gained his MBA from IMD in Switzerland.
Kath’s current role brings together the experience and brand agenda from both the perspectives of the customer and employee. Kath has worked in the sector for nearly 20 years and her mission is to build the reputation of hospitality careers through education.
She leads the Pizza Hut Restaurants in-house team to deliver hospitality Apprenticeships and partners with a number of institutions to provide development pathways from entry level to MBA. Kath is a Chartered Member of CIPD and Chartered Management Institute (CMI) and has recently been appointed the Chair for the CMI Wales Board.
Kath appears on the HR Most Influential Leaders 2017-2021.
Mike has been the Chief Business Development Director since 2015 responsible for the strategic development of HwS from a single, to a multi brand business and becoming itsu’s first strategic franchise partner in 2021. Mike has many years of board level leadership experience and deep expertise in both Estates and Operations both in the UK and Europe. Prior to the Restaurant sector Mike worked at King Sturge - Chartered Surveyors.
Mike currently looks after the Group’s almost 170 unit property portfolio and led the £70 million pound investment programme across the Pizza Hut portfolio including asset, menu and operations. Mike was a key part of the team that bought Pizza Hut Restaurants from Yum! and later staging the subsequent Management Buyout.
Andy is a leading industry expert in the strategy and economics of casual dining with over 20 years in the sector. Andy was a key member of the Pizza Hut Restaurants turnaround team, recognized for his evidence-based approach to decision making and generating market leading returns.
He was appointed CFO of Pizza Hut Restaurants in April 2018 and subsequently CFO of the Heart with Smart Group (HwS). Prior to HwS, Andy worked for Pizza Hut Restaurants and also Yum! as CFO of KFC France and held a number of senior finance positions with Whitbread and British Airways. Andy is a Chartered Certified Accountant and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics.
Suzi is a true casual dining operations expert having worked in every type of front and back of house role culminating in her current Board level position. Since 2017 Suzi has been the Chief Director of Operations for Pizza Hut Restaurants providing an inspirational career role model for our up-and-coming pipeline of talent.
Prior the current appointment, Suzi was Operations Director from 2015 to 2017. Other roles including; Regional Director of Operations for Scotland and the North, Head of Concept Innovation, Operations Manager, Restaurant Area Manager and Restaurant General Manager.
Steve was appointed onto the Management Team in December 2018 as the Director of Supply Chain and IT. A graduate of the Bristol Business School and a Chartered Member of CIMA, Steve has spent 25 years in the hospitality sector, in a variety of front line operational and head office leadership roles.
Steve is passionate about the environment and creating sustainable businesses, is the lead advocate of the Heart with Smart Group (HwS) corporate social responsibility agenda and a proud partner of the Zero Carbon Forum, WRAP and the Sustainable Restaurants Association.
