Sheelagh Doyle, Global People Operations Director, HBX Group
At Ascension, we’re proud to showcase outstanding HR leaders who are shaping the future of work. In this edition of our HR Leader Spotlight Series, we speak with Sheelagh Doyle, Global People Operations Director at HBX Group, whose career spans more than 25 years across technology, travel, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, FMCG manufacturing, insurance, and professional services.
From leading global HR transformations across 60+ countries to championing trust-based leadership and driving operational excellence through technology, Sheelagh shares her insights on leadership, AI, the future of HR, and what it takes to become a successful HR leader.
Meet Sheelagh Doyle
As Global People Operations Director at HBX Group, Sheelagh leads a diverse global team responsible for people operations, payroll, and labour relations across more than 60 countries. Throughout her career, she has built expertise in HR transformation, employee experience, HR technology, governance, compliance, organisational change, and operational excellence.
What continues to motivate her? Solving complex challenges, developing high-performing teams, and helping organisations navigate change while ensuring people remain at the heart of every decision.
Three Words That Define Her Leadership Style
Transparent. Energetic. Trust-Based.
These three words set the tone for how Sheelagh leads her teams and approaches challenges. Trust and transparency emerge as recurring themes throughout our conversation, underpinning her belief that great teams thrive when people feel empowered, informed, and valued.
An Unconventional Route into HR
Not every HR career begins with a carefully mapped-out plan.
“Honestly, I was going to fail as an accountant and didn’t see myself in marketing.”
What started as a practical decision evolved into a highly successful HR career spanning more than two decades. Today, Sheelagh is a passionate advocate for the strategic value HR can deliver when it combines commercial understanding with people expertise.
Career Highlights and Proudest Achievements
When asked about her proudest accomplishments, Sheelagh found it impossible to choose just one.
From a technical perspective, she cites the successful implementation of a HRIS platform without additional resources or dedicated project management support. Personally, one of her most rewarding achievements was leading a large-scale transformation project that resulted in more than half of the affected employees being redeployed rather than made redundant.
“Creating outcomes that support both the business and its people is something I’m particularly proud of.”
The Biggest Challenges Facing HR Leaders Today
For Sheelagh, today’s HR leaders are navigating two significant shifts simultaneously.
The first is the adoption of artificial intelligence and ensuring organisations have strategies in place that allow employees to develop the skills, confidence, and support needed to embrace AI-driven change.
The second is the rapid evolution of consumer behaviour and expectations, which are increasingly influencing employee expectations in the workplace.
“Employees now expect speed, transparency, and a personalised experience, which isn’t always possible.”
Balancing these rising expectations while maintaining consistency, fairness, and operational efficiency is a challenge every HR team is facing.
The Workplace Trend That Will Shape the Future
When asked which trend will have the greatest impact on the future of work, Sheelagh’s answer was simple:
“How we react to AI.”
While the technology itself is transformative, she believes the real differentiator will be how organisations and leaders respond to it, adapt their workforce strategies, and support employees through change.
Building High-Performing Teams
For Sheelagh, exceptional teams are built on three essential foundations:
Trust
Employees perform at their best when they feel trusted and empowered to make decisions.
Honesty
Open conversations encourage accountability, learning, and continuous improvement.
Transparency
Sharing both opportunities and challenges creates alignment and clarity across global teams.
“When trust, honesty, and transparency are working well, teams become more engaged, resilient, collaborative, and willing to challenge each other respectfully.”
The Best Career Advice She’s Received
One piece of advice has stayed with Sheelagh throughout her career:
“Don’t be afraid to use your voice.”
Shared by a former female CEO, the advice encouraged her to believe in her abilities, speak with confidence, stay true to her values, and never allow others to define her potential.
“Authenticity, self-belief, and resilience are powerful foundations for both personal and professional success.”
A Must-Have Skill for HR Professionals
While many people might expect communication or emotional intelligence to top the list, Sheelagh points to something different:
Business and Financial Acumen
Understanding how organisations generate revenue, manage costs, and make strategic decisions enables HR professionals to contribute far beyond traditional people practices.
She also highlights the growing importance of data and analytics.
“The combination of financial understanding and data-driven insight allows HR to move from being a support function to a true strategic partner.”
Staying Balanced in a Demanding Role
Leading people operations across dozens of countries requires resilience and self-awareness.
For Sheelagh, maintaining work-life balance involves disconnecting from screens, spending time outdoors, golfing, walking, yoga, knitting, and regular sea swims.
She also follows a simple but powerful mindset:
“Let Them.”
By focusing energy on what she can influence and letting go of what she cannot control, she maintains perspective during challenging periods.
And, like many successful leaders, she credits a strong support network.
“If it’s been a particularly bad day, I have an amazing group of friends who always lift me up.”
If She Could Change One Thing About Recruitment…
Sheelagh would encourage organisations to look beyond industry-specific experience.
Too often, hiring decisions are constrained by what she describes as “industry groupthink”, where teams become filled with people who share similar experiences, backgrounds, and ways of thinking.
“I actively look for people who don’t necessarily have the same industry experience as myself or the wider team. I want individuals who will bring different perspectives, ask thought-provoking questions, and contribute new ideas.”
For her, diversity of thought is a key driver of innovation and better decision-making.
Why HBX Group Stands Out
When discussing what makes HBX Group a great place to work, Sheelagh highlights three factors:
- A culture that constantly challenges employees to learn and think differently
- The opportunity to solve new and complex problems every day
- The ability to drive innovation through technology and continuous improvement
From a People Operations perspective, she is particularly excited by the possibilities offered through Workday and the opportunity to further enhance the employee experience through better use of technology, data, and smarter processes.
“It’s the combination of great people, continuous improvement, and the freedom to drive innovation that makes it such a great place to work.”
Quick Fire Round: This or That?
Office or Remote?
Remote, with monthly travel to HQ
Coffee or Tea?
Coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon
Early Bird or Night Owl?
Early bird. “I’m useless after 4pm!”
Interviewing or Talent Strategy?
Interviewing
Data or Instinct?
Data
Planning or Problem Solving?
A difficult choice, but the Operations professional in her leans toward planning, although she loves problem solving.
Sheelagh’s Advice for Aspiring HR Leaders
One of Sheelagh’s strongest messages is that HR leadership requires breadth as well as depth.
While the HR Business Partner role is often viewed as a pinnacle position, she believes future HR leaders should seek exposure across all areas of the profession, including:
- People Operations
- Talent Acquisition
- Reward
- Labour Relations
- Learning & Development
- HR Technology
- Risk & Compliance
“The strongest HR leaders understand how these centres of excellence work together to create a seamless employee experience and support business outcomes.”
She also emphasises the importance of courage.
HR leaders must be willing to challenge constructively, ask difficult questions, and sometimes say “no” when decisions are not in the best interests of the organisation or its people.
“For me, great HR leadership is about combining commercial acumen, operational understanding, and the courage to do the right thing.”
Final Thoughts
With more than 25 years of global HR leadership experience, Sheelagh Doyle embodies the qualities that modern organisations need from their people leaders: commercial acumen, operational excellence, adaptability, and an unwavering commitment to trust and transparency.
As HR professionals continue to navigate AI-driven transformation, changing workforce expectations, and increasingly complex global environments, leaders like Sheelagh provide a valuable reminder that success starts with people, and that high-performing teams are built on trust, diverse thinking, continuous learning, and the confidence to challenge the status quo.
Connect with Sheelagh
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheelaghdoyle
Learn More About HBX Group
Website: HBX Group
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