Leadership Interview Series: Adam Lawson

Through our CORE Leadership Series, we showcase exceptional and inspiring industry leaders via in-depth interviews

Here is an excellent interview with Adam Lawson, Operations Director for Champneys

Tell us a little about yourself and your business.

I’ve recently stepped into the role of Operations Director for Champneys, leading the operational and strategic performance of all resorts and hotels across the group. My background spans more than a decade in hospitality leadership, progressing from departmental leadership through to General Manager, Regional General Manager, and now Group-level responsibility.

What has shaped me most is the breadth of operational experience I’ve gained across luxury hotels, spas, conference operations, and large-scale wellness resorts. I’ve managed turnovers from £3.5 million to now over £65 million at group level, and I’ve had the privilege of mentoring and developing high-performing teams at every stage of my career. 

Champneys is a heritage brand with a modern purpose: to elevate wellbeing through exceptional experiences. My role is to ensure operational consistency, commercial strength, and a culture where our teams feel proud of the work they do every day.

What do you see as the biggest challenges currently facing the UK, and how will a business like yours respond?

Across the UK hospitality and wellness sectors, we’re facing a combination of cost pressures, workforce shortages, and rapidly rising guest expectations. Consumers want more personalised, results-driven experiences, while businesses are balancing energy costs, labour challenges, and an increasingly competitive market.

At Champneys, our response is threefold:

• Strengthening operational efficiency: my background in restructuring operations and improving profit margins at resort and regional level informs how we approach this group wide. We’ve already implemented strategies that streamline processes, optimise labour, and protect service quality
• Investing in people and leadership development: a huge part of my leadership identity is team development. We have implemented training programmes, improved staff performance, and built collaborative leadership cultures at all sites. A strong people-first strategy is essential to overcoming workforce shortages and maintaining service excellence.
• Innovating the guest experience: the UK market is shifting toward holistic wellness, recovery, longevity, and personalised wellbeing journeys. Champneys is uniquely positioned to lead this evolution, and I see our focus being on innovation that enhances both wellbeing outcomes and commercial performance.

Where do you think the most promising investments should be focusing on and/or made?

Given the pace of change in hospitality and wellness, the most strategic investments lie in:

• Technology that enhances operational consistency: digital tools that reduce administrative burden, support revenue management, and personalise the guest journey. My experience driving revenue through pricing, competitor analysis, and yield management shows how powerful the right systems can be
• people and leadership development: developing future leaders is something I’m deeply passionate about both through formal mentorship programmes and informal coaching. Investing in leadership pipelines stabilises operations and drives long-term profitability.
• wellness innovation: as guest expectations evolve, investments in cutting-edge treatments, integrated medical-wellbeing services, and results-driven programming will differentiate the brand.

What skills or mindsets will be most important for the next generation of hospitality leaders in the UK?

• people-first leadership: great hospitality outcomes rely on teams who feel supported and inspired. Emotional intelligence and visibility are essential.
• commercial reliability: future leaders must understand budgeting, forecasting, and market trends. I’ve always believed strong commercial awareness is a core leadership responsibility, not just a departmental one.
• adaptability and resilience: my progression from General Manager to Regional GM to Group leadership required an ability to adapt quickly, make high-pressure decisions, and remain solution-focused in fast-changing environments.
• vision with accountability: leaders must be able to set a direction, communicate it clearly, and take responsibility for outcomes.

What’s the most important leadership lesson you’ve learned?

That people follow clarity, consistency, and purpose. Throughout my career, the strongest results have come when teams understand not just what we are doing, but why. Whether leading a £13m resort or a multi-site region, I’ve learned that clear communication, active support, and leading from the front build trust faster than any initiative. Another lesson is the power of empowerment. When people feel ownership, performance and engagement accelerate.

How do you prioritise tasks when everything feels like a priority?

I rely on a structured, impact-driven approach:

• guest impact: what will materially improve the guest experience today?
• financial impact: what protects margin, revenue, or reduces risk?
• team impact: what supports my managers and enables them to deliver?

From there, I separate tasks into:

Do now, delegate, schedule, eliminate or park. Managing multi-site operations has sharpened my ability to maintain focus under pressure; prioritisation becomes a discipline rather than a reaction.

What does the industry need more of (or less of) to continue thriving? 

The hospitality and wellness industry is at a pivotal point, and to continue thriving we need to be very intentional about where we evolve and where we simplify. From my perspective, the industry needs:

More of:

• People development and leadership investment. Our industry relies on frontline teams and the leaders who support them. We need stronger pipelines, structured development programmes, and leaders who understand the importance of coaching and empowering others.
• Authentic, personalised experiences. Guests no longer want a generic service, they want something that feels personal, considered, and purposeful. At Champneys, we’ve seen how tailoring experiences drives loyalty, satisfaction, and commercial results. The industry needs to lean further into genuine hospitality rather than scripted service.
• Sustainability linked to commercial reality. Sustainability shouldn’t be a bolt-on, it needs to be embedded into operations in a way that reduces cost, energy use, and waste. The most successful operators will be those who make sustainability both practical and commercially intelligent.

Less of:

• Over-complication of systems and processes. Many operators have created layers of admin that slow teams down rather than support them. We need smarter, simpler processes that free people to focus on service delivery and guest engagement.
• Short-term thinking. Chasing quick wins often comes at the expense of long-term culture, service standards, and brand equity. Sustainable success comes from consistent strategy, strong leadership, and disciplined operational performance.
• Reactive management. The industry still spends too much time firefighting. The businesses that thrive are those with strong planning, good forecasting, and leadership teams who can anticipate rather than simply respond.
• Staff burnout. High turnover is not a cost of doing business it’s a symptom of deeper issues. We need healthier working environments, clearer expectations, and leadership that actively supports wellbeing.

What do you hope your legacy will be for your organisation and the industry?

Within Champneys, I hope my legacy is one of strong, modernised operations, empowered leaders, and a culture that values wellbeing, accountability, and excellence. I want people I’ve worked with to say that I helped them grow both professionally and personally. In the wider industry, I hope to demonstrate that commercial performance and people-centric leadership are not opposing forces, but complementary drivers of sustainable success.

If I can contribute to raising standards in wellness hospitality while supporting the next generation of leaders through mentorship, something I actively pursue, that would be a legacy I’m proud of.