Marks & Spencer names new chief people officer

British department store Marks & Spencer has announced a new appointment in their people leadership team. They have appointed Hayley Tatum as their new Chief People Officer, effective October 2025. Her appointment was confirmed by Marks & Spencer CEO, Stuart Machin, in a LinkedIn post.

She joins the retailer from Asda, where she spent over 14 years in the same role, nine of which were in combination with the title Chief Corporate Affairs Officer.

Tatum will join the Executive Committee and will start her month-long induction by working in stores alongside store colleagues and in distribution centres alongside distribution colleagues.

Tatum succeeds Sarah Findlater, who has been People Director for the last three years and worked at M&S for 27 years, and will be leaving M&S in the Autumn. “Sarah has been a fantastic colleague and leader in the business over her time with M&S,” said Machin.

Machin, who has worked with Tatum previously, said she has a very hands-on and collaborative leadership style, crafted through her many roles over the years in HR and store operations. “We have lots to do in the years ahead to transform M&S and importantly, become even closer to our customers and closer to our colleagues.”

In her post, Findlater said: “It’s been a real privilege to grow through so many leadership roles and to work alongside some truly fabulous people who’ve inspired me every step of the way, and never more so than during the three months I recently spent working in stores alongside our incredible store colleagues. I leave the business at a high point – after three years of commercial growth, cultural transformation, and deep operational change.”