Whitbread appoints Christine Hodgson as chair

Whitbread has today (27 May 2025) confirmed the appointment of Christine Hodgson as its new chair with effect from 1 September 2025. 

Hodgson will replace Adam Crozier, who will step down as chair and retire from the board on the same date.

The news comes after the hotel group hired Russell Reynolds Associates in a bid to find a successor to Crozier. 

Hodgson, who is also chair of Severn Trent PLC, has held several senior roles across the technology and consumer-facing sectors, working with multiple high-growth international companies.

She also previously worked for Capgemini, one of the world’s largest technology and professional services groups, and held a number of roles, including CFO of the Global Outsourcing business, CEO of Technology Services North West Europe, and executive chair of Capgemini UK Plc from 2011 to 2020.

Hodgson also served as the senior independent director of Standard Chartered Plc until 2023.

Meanwhile, Crozier joined the board in April 2017 and has been chair for the past seven years. 

Hodgson said: “It is an honour to be appointed chair of Whitbread. Whitbread is a business with strong brands, an experienced leadership team and 34,000 committed team members across the organisation. 

“It’s an exciting time to be joining, as the company continues to deliver on its Five-Year Plan, and Premier Inn’s expansion in Germany gathers pace. I look forward to leading the board and working alongside the talented teams as we unlock the group’s full potential.”

Richard Gillingwater, senior independent director, who led the selection process, added: “We have conducted a thorough process, and it was evident that Christine will be an outstanding successor to Adam. Christine’s experience working with high-profile consumer and technology businesses will be hugely valuable over the coming years. 

“On behalf of the whole board, I would like to thank Adam for his guidance, wisdom, enthusiasm and commitment, steering the company through a period of significant change to create sustainable value for shareholders.”

Crozier concluded: “It has been a privilege to lead the Whitbread board through this period of growth and change. I’m proud that as I leave the business, we are on course for Premier Inn to become Europe’s number one budget hotel business. I want to thank my colleagues on the board, and the whole Whitbread team, for their support during my time as chair, and wish Christine and everyone in the business every success in the future.”