Our Story

Software with a Service

HGEM has been a pioneer for over 20 years. In 2003, we were the first to use the term ‘mystery dining’ as a specialist form of mystery shopping. It reflected the deeper and longer experiences that are typical in hospitality, as compared with retail. Hot on the heels of the dot.com explosion, we were the first to use the internet to provide next-day reporting.

Fast forward to the mid-2010's, and there are many more ways to gain insights from guests from surveys and reviews. We embraced these and were the first to use the term ‘Guest Experience Management’ (GEM). Our mission was to establish this as a core business discipline for hospitality businesses and to be the best source of expertise and tools. That mission has been achieved.

Now, in the mid-2020s, HGEM's award-winning platform, The Hub, is used by tens of thousands of venues, large and small. Guest Experience Managers with operations and marketing roles use it to engage with guests and gain insights that help them to grow sales.

But our growth is not just fueled by our amazing software. Because working in partnership with our clients comes as standard. We act as an extension to your team, interested in your strategy and playing our part to help you achieve it. It's how we learn and innovate. Many of our team have had careers in hospitality, so we understand the terminology and the challenges. We call this 'Software with a Service' and you won't find it anywhere else.

Let's see what we can achieve together!

Get to know the people behind HGEM

We’re incredibly proud of the work we do with our hospitality clients to improve guest experience through our insights platform, The Hub — but that’s not all we’re about. At our core, we’re a team of people, passionate about exceptional experiences. Check out who we are and why we’re obsessed with hospitality.

Darcie Streeter-Oxland

Product Architect

I love shaping how our products evolve, sitting between the technical and commercial sides of HGEM. My focus is making sure what we build solves real problems for our clients.

Nick Nikolenko

Software Engineer

I like being part of a team that solves complex problems and has fun doing it.

Hollie Evans

Head of Finance

I look after HGEM's financial health, because a strong, stable business is exactly what our clients need from a long-term partner. Getting that right underpins everything else we do for them.

Tanisha Penney

Business Systems Architect

I oversee HGEM's internal AI capabilities to keep us running as efficiently as possible. This is what enables HGEM to be a hospitality partner that's always evolving.

Jess Pow

Client Success Manager

I enjoy the variety in my job; every client is different, and I enjoy the challenge of helping each one get real, lasting value from their Guest Experience Management programme.

Keit Vende

Head of Sales & Marketing

I wish I had tools like The Hub when I helped manage a bar 10 years ago. My mission now is to get the word out there about how hospitality tech can help.

Jess Ward

Change Coordinator

I love helping others and solving problems, every day is different and there’s always a chance to learn something new and improve the experience of all users

Samantha Grimes

Diner Operations Manager

I love working in such a friendly positive team and speaking with our mystery guests about their dining experiences.

Charlotte Carr

Diner Support Coordinator

It’s great to be working in such a varied role and be part of a hardworking, supportive team.

Matthew Brunt

Infrastructure Engineer

What's most important to me is keeping HGEM's systems locked down, because that's exactly what keeps our clients' data safe too.

Lauren Gould

Head of Operations

I enjoy engaging with our clients and learning about what they are trying to achieve, then in partnership with them, building a solution that can support and help them reach their targets. I’m proud to work in such a fantastic industry.

Daniel Lewis