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Our latest profile features Gordon Jackson, general manager of the award-winning Thorpe Park Hotel and Spa, Colton, and chairman of the Leeds Hotels Association, a consortium of 32 hotels and venues
Tell us about your formative years
I was born and bred in Mill Hill, London, to a close-knit family.
My parents spent a small fortune sending my elder sister, Vivien, to South Hampstead High and myself to Highgate School for 10 years – they were both fee-paying schools. My parents wanted us to have the best education they could afford and sacrificed much to give us that opportunity.
Having left school and given up a banking career that lasted all of nine months, I spent a week's holiday in an hotel in Woolacombe. I started to wonder how that hotel clicked – how so much food could be served at once, how knowledgeable the teams were and how there seemed to be a great atmosphere of teamwork amongst the staff.
Later that evening I went to the local bar in which I recognised several members of the hotel staff who were having a great time and were certainly endorsing the "work hard, play hard" culture which I now recognise is the drug to which most folk in the hospitality trade succumb.
I enrolled at Westminster School of Hotel & Catering and began my career in the business.
Tell us about your hotel, and the group which owns it, and how you came to work for them
I joined Shire Hotels, or Shire Inns as it was then, as deputy manager of the North Lakes hotel in Penrith. They had – and still have – a product that just blows you away and their philosophy of customer service and hotel management in general is second to none.
I've now worked with them for 20 years, opening two hotels and working in two more, and there are very positive reasons why I have stayed with them for that period of time. Though it's now a very large company, it's still small enough that you're very much a person in your own right, not just a number or placing. And you also have a real stakeholding in the business – both in terms of a point of influence and a financial contribution.
Explain your business philosophy
You cannot concentrate on the bottom line alone and then think about your people in a secondary way – especially in the customer service industry.
Profit will come as a result of looking after your staff, because they will look after your customers and your customers will keep coming back if they've had a great experience.
If you weren't doing the job you are doing now, where might you be – or where might you like to have been?
I would have probably played goal for Chelsea – I was known as "The Cat" in my younger days! My grandparents were Chelsea supporters so I had no choice but to become a Chelsea supporter. People I meet in Leeds are very happy about that fact!
What do you feel are the major business issues which affect Leeds and the country in general?
Following on from the last question, not having a Premiership team is a significant downer for Leeds. Leeds people need a Premiership team, that great feel-good factor when your team is meeting with consistent success.
Of course, it would also be good for business. I was the opening manager at Thorpe Park so I've seen all the Premiership teams come here to stay, and now they're not.
As chairman of Leeds Hotels Association I know that on European nights Leeds used to buzz and now it doesn't!
We all look for that extra edge for our business.
But one of the main things that hampers business is traffic congestion. You frequently get stuck trying to get to and from Leeds city centre to the motorways.
I know it may seem glib, but I would look for a more integrated transport policy.
It was a big setback when the Supertram proposals were abandoned. It would be great for visitors to Leeds, especially guests of my hotel, to be able to park and go into Leeds for business or pleasure, and know they've got a seamless transport network throughout Leeds for the whole day.
A good public transport infrastructure also means a cleaner, greener city.
If you had the power to tackle these issues, how would you go about it?
It's very difficult because it's something of a chicken and egg situation: you have to have a proven system which people trust to encourage them to leave their cars at home. It would require someone in government office to grasp the nettle, and no one seems prepared to do that at present.
Looking at the hotel sector in Leeds, what do you feel are the challenges it faces currently and how will you be addressing them?
The oversupply of bedrooms has always been a concern of the Leeds Hotel Association.
We believe there are a substantial amount of bedrooms that have been built or are yet to be built in Leeds, and if we are going to see a slowdown of the economy and a softening of demand, then that will seriously affect the hospitality industry in the city.
LHA and other groups with an interest in the tourism economy have got to work hard to make sure that we are marketing Leeds as the very best place to come for business or leisure purposes.
Who in the world most impresses you a) in business and b) in life generally?
In business, I always find Sir Stewart Rose, executive chairman of Marks & Spencer, to be very impressive. To revive a brand that was becoming tired and unfashionable in most people's books, by using what seemed a very simple set of prudent business rules, is very refreshing.
In life generally, the most recent people who have impressed me were our athletes at the Olympic Games, especially Rebecca Adlington. Her sheer joy when she won her first gold brought joy to all of us. And then to see her sincerity and modesty following the result was delightful.
At Thorpe Park we're initiating a programme to help three young people achieve their sporting potential. Over the next four years we're going to be giving four students a year's free membership and support within our spa.
They won't necessarily be potential gold medallists like Rebecca, but just young people who've shown that they want to strive for the very best that they can achieve.
Away from the office where are we most likely to find you?
I have three children, and I take a great interest in all of them: my eldest daughter is at Leeds College of Art – it amazes me the things that she produces; I live my football through my son now – so there's a lot of pressure on his shoulders!; and my youngest daughter will be a great netballer, I'm sure.
I also play golf, whenever I can. I can tell you that practice does not make perfect – it makes you break your golf clubs! And, of course, I avidly watch football on TV.
You're hosting a dinner party and can invite one extra person from history – either living or dead. Who would you invite..and why?
It would have to be George Best, wouldn't it? He was the greatest footballer of all time and he'd bring some super company with him. You know you'd have a hell of a party!
MY CV
GORDON JACKSON
HND in Hotel and Catering Management from Westminster School of Hotel & Catering.
First role was as joint manager at the Noel Arms, a small country house hotel in the Cotswolds.
From there, via a short spell at a hotel in Harrogate, to Shire Hotels, or Shire Inns as it was then, in 1986.
General Manager of Thorpe Park Hotel since it opened in 2002.
Chairman of Leeds Hotels Association, a partnership organisation that works to raise the profile of Leeds as a national and international destination for business and leisure.
Keen golfer and Chelsea fan.
Married with three children
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Weather for Leeds
Wednesday 23 May 2012
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