Our Story

HGEM has always been a pioneer, being the first to coin the term ‘mystery dining’ back in 2003 when the company was originally founded as the Mystery Dining Company.

The firm was born from a conversation with well-known restaurant owner who was losing track of what was going on in his restaurants. He had a mystery shopping company working for him that was unreliable and failing to get results back quickly. We knew we could do better than that and so he gave us six restaurants as a trial to see what we could do.

We were able to complete visits and provide detailed feedback in near ‘real time’ which enabled him to implement changes and quickly see improvement. After this initial success, we won the contract for the whole estate and the rest is history.

Since then we have continued to seek innovative ways to empower hospitality operators in a competitive and rapidly changing market, and today work internationally with over 10,000 restaurants, pubs, hotels, cinemas and caterers including many well-known brands such as wagamama, Greene King, Malmaison, Empire Cinemas, Royal Ascot, Sodexo, and local high street institutions Pret a Manger, Lounges and EAT.

Today our mission is to establish ‘Guest Experience Management’ as a core discipline for hospitality businesses, providing award-winning tools and support to help operators monitor their performance and generate a culture of continuous improvement for teams.

Our People

Many of our people have joined us having worked in the hospitality industry and so it truly has shaped who we are and the way we behave. We understand the pressures and challenges of your teams because we have been there, and we’re passionate about supporting you to deliver a great guest experience every time. We have also been crowned Employer of the Year at the Bath Live Business Awards.

Rosie Dewhirst

Quality Advisor

As well as validating reports, I enjoy my role as Quality Advisor, ensuring that standards are met within the company and high quality reports are sent through to our clients.

Hannah Bailey

Head of Business Development

I feel a sense of accomplishment when we partner with a new client knowing that HGEM will significantly improve their team moral and performance.

Sally Whelan

Director

Sharing insightful guest experience information to enable hospitality operators to become ever more hospitable.

Amie Jackman

Implementation Coordinator

I enjoy creating bespoke questionnaires and visits that are tailored to our client’s style of service. Its satisfying to then see them create data that allows our clients to really drill into their guest’s experience.

Zoe Robinson

Client Relationship Manager

I enjoy building strong relationships with my clients whilst supporting them in achieving excellence!

Tanisha Hough

Mystery Guest Advisor

I love being able to support our clients in their journey to improve their guests’ experiences and doing so as part of such a friendly and dedicated team.

Jess Ward

Quality & Training Team Leader

I enjoy having an inside scope into our mystery guests' visits and helping them have the best experience possible, as well as providing clients with high quality reports.

James Whitehouse

Client Insight & Relationship Manager

Using my experience in the industry to ensure my clients are getting the most from their schemes.

Steven Pike

Managing Director

It's really important to me that we put our clients in the driving seat and coordinate all our resources in pursuit of your objectives.

Benedicte Adriaens

Multilingual Report Validator

Being bilingual allows me to support our diners on both sides of the Channel. I enjoy ensuring the reports we send to our clients are of a high standard.

Brian Mitchell

Test Engineer

I feel very lucky I get to create great technology to a high standard with some brilliant forward thinking people.

Ash Sharpe

Client Relationship Manager

I enjoy partnering with clients to support and elevate them to the best they can be through the ownership of their guests experience.

Join Us

Our people are our most valued asset – they are what sets us apart from our competitors and make our clients want to work with us.

So, we are always interested to hear from like-minded people keen to work for a company that rewards, challenges and supports its employees.

We don't currently have any vacancies but if you are interested in joining our team please send a speculative CV to hr@hgem.com

Our Mystery Guests

At HGEM we are fortunate to have a fantastic community of mystery guests that we try hard to nurture and support as stakeholders in 'empowering hospitality'. In return, they go the extra mile to provide detailed and practical feedback on their experiences.

If you are interested in becoming one of our mystery guests, please go to mysterydining.net.

"When I now go for a drink or meal, whether I’m on a Mystery Visit or not, I tend to take notice of my environment a lot more than I used to. I also can identify good customer service and appreciate how hard staff work whilst looking after their customers."

Mystery Guest 61441

"Through the eyes of a customer, sharing my experience with companies that I otherwise might never have chosen to visit and sharing great opportunities that allow them to be first for customer service."

Mystery Guest 82635

"I really appreciate being able to have a night away and explore somewhere new. I even enjoy the report writing. I am constantly surprised by the gems I've found eating at places I'd have never tried with my own money."

Mystery Guest 57893

"I like being able to feel like my experience as a Mystery Guest is being heard by the places I eat at. That my feedback might help improve service or reward those doing a good job."

About Us