Blog. Spotlight on: Ryan Haynes.
April 28, 2026 | Author Giuliana Vittiglio
In an industry that never stands still, keeping pace with change can feel like a full-time job in itself. From rapid advances in technology to shifting economic pressures, today’s hospitality leaders are navigating an increasingly complex landscape. That’s exactly why Hoteliers’ Voice was created. Hosted by Ryan Haynes, the podcast and accompanying roundtable series bring together real voices from across the sector to share honest experiences, practical insights and the lessons learned along the way. We recently caught up with Ryan to learn more.
What inspired you to launch Hoteliers’ Voice, and what gap do you feel it filled in the industry?
Change. There is so much happening in business, technology, the economy etc that there’s a lot for hoteliers to get their heads around. Add to that so many new products and services coming to market, with the leaps and bounds of technology I realised it was becoming hard to make sense of it all.
The podcast is about hoteliers sharing their stories – where they’ve made ground to really improve their business. It’s all so personal to the hotelier and the business but I hope that the listeners hear something that relates to them, their experiences and challenges – and can get ideas of how to solve their problems.
The difference to other hoteliers and hospitality podcasts is that I theme each episode that tackles a specific area of the business. That way listeners can choose to listen to what’s relevant, or just learn along the way.
Who has been your most surprising or memorable podcast guest so far, and why?
I think it was when I visited The Headland Hotel for the roundtable. I already knew Veryan Palmer the family director for a few years and she had been a guest on my conference panels. She did one podcast with me on practical use of AI – and this is a few years ago, for someone who knows nothing about tech – she did a great job.
But it was at The Headland that all she had talked to me about, all the work she’s been doing in the industry came to life. Not only hearing stories from local hoteliers, but also from across the staff at The Headland where we were joined by the 24-year-old Assistant Operations Manager, and the 18-year-old bar hand who had been there since he was 14 – and the former kitchen porter now IT Manager.
It really is a hotel with family at its heart.
What sparked the idea for your hospitality roundtable events?
Hospitality leaders solve their problems best with their peers; sharing experiences of what works and what has not worked. Rather than have suppliers constantly selling or promoting solutions, it is more valuable to hear from the users themselves. This allows us to see how different elements of the business relate, where there are gaps and how systems and applications are practically enabling better profit or operations.
I put my own money into hosting the first event in London, and the format worked perfectly – by inviting a select group of hospitality leaders – no more than 20, meant we got a lot of incredibly engaging conversations between them. I realised that many don’t ever get a chance to speak so openly with one another, where most conferences they just passively sit in the audience rather than interact with the content.
What kinds of voices or perspectives are you most keen to bring into the room?
Certainly, I’m looking to get more voices and perspectives from Operations, Housekeeping, Maintenance and F&B. I get they struggle to get out of the office for more than a few hours, but they will certainly feel the benefit of speaking to likeminded professionals dealing with similar challenges.
Unfortunately, sometimes I feel Operations is overlooked for the Commercial side of the business. It’s all well and good making money but unless we tackle where to manage cost and experience, we don’t have a closed loop.
I’d like to hear more from younger people starting their careers in hospitality – how can we make roles, training, progression much more attractive.
Why was it important for you to partner with Hospitality Action?
I like to collaborate with organisations that have a similar mission. Over the years I’ve got to know Hospitality Action and the great work it does for the industry and hospitality workers.
On the one hand we need to keep sharing these stories, but also on the other, we need to highlight the root of the problems and support hospitality leaders to put the frameworks and resources in place to support teams. If together we can move the dial in a positive direction, not only do we reduce the problem but we also make the industry a better place to work.
Many thanks to Ryan for giving up his time to speak with us, and for championing Hospitality Action at each roundtable roadshow this year. You can tune into the Hospitality Voices podcase on Spotify, Apple or YouTube.
And to reserve your place at the May 7th Round Table at Kings Court Hotel Alcester, Stratford-upon-Avon, click here.
