London Gatwick Appoints Kathleen Maes as CHRO

London Gatwick names Kathleen Maes as their new Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO). Kathleen’s appointment will focus on enhancing the organizatio’s strategy for workforce planning, talent management and organisational development. Her appointment was effective from 17 August, 2026.

In her new role as CHRO, Kathleen will lead people strategy of London Gatwick while the airport moves forward to enhance its capabilities and evaluates the opportunities that come with the Northern Runway.

Kathleen will be concentrating on workforce planning, talent management, organisational effectiveness, and employee engagement in order to ensure people  and business strategy are well-coordinated. 

Key Highlights:

• Kathleen Maes takes charge of London Gatwick as their new Chief Human Resources Officer
• Kathleen brings years of transformation and workforce expertise
• Her role focuses on talent, workforce planning and engagement

She will be instrumental in assisting employees during organisational changes and operational serving the company’s future needs. With her background in transformation and strategic workforce management, she will bring a new people leadership approach to London Gatwick's next phase of development.

Kathleen said, "It’s an exciting time to join London Gatwick as we look forward to realising the benefits of the Northern Runway and embrace innovation and technology to keep improving the passenger and employee experience. Our vision is at the heart of everything that we do and my focus will be on ensuring our employees feel valued, supported and proud to work here."

Prior to this, Kathleen worked at BT Group as HR Director for Portfolio Business, Transformation and M&A, responsible for people strategy and HR expertise for business transformation and M&A projects.

Leveraging years of experience, Kathleen has expertise in organizational transformation, mergers and acquisitions, talent strategies, workforce planning, employee engagement, leadership development, and culture. She has gained extensive experience displaying women’s leadership through her various roles in BT Group, having held several senior HR positions there.

Kathleen gained her HR experience in jobs spanning the automotive, telecoms, and services industries. She was the HR Manager Benelux for Jaguar Land Rover Benelux and also the HR Manager Belux of BT. She strengthened her HR experience from jobs with Facilicom Services Group Belgium and LBC-NVK.

Pierre-Hugues Schmit, Chief Executive, London Gatwick commented, “Our vision - to be the airport for everyone, whatever your journey - means delivering an enjoyable, accessible and efficient passenger experience and making our airport a great place to work. Our people are what sets us apart and we are delighted to welcome Kathleen and the experience that she brings at such an important phase in our journey following the recent legal decision on our Northern Runway project."

As the organization evolves and considers the future possibilities offered by the Northern Runway, Kathleen will be instrumental in adding a strong people leadership perspective to London Gatwick’s next stage of development.