Jenna Hurley is the Director of Talent at Harrods, leading the company’s approach to Talent Acquisition, Employer Brand and Talent Development. She’s passionate about attracting, selecting and developing top talent, ensuring Harrods continues to be a place where great people can thrive and deliver exceptional results. Jenna focuses on building a high-performance culture and shaping an employee experience that reflects the values of the Harrods brand. Outside of work, she’s a proud mum of three and enjoys balancing a busy family life with a career she loves.
In addition to her professional journey, Jenna has just returned from maternity leave after welcoming her third child. Outside of work, you’ll often find Jenna as a spectator on the sidelines of a sports field, supporting her kids. She’s also passionate about cooking and has an undeniable obsession with recipe books, always on the lookout for new things to cook!
What’s a recent professional achievement of yours that you are proud of?
I returned from maternity leave 10 months ago to take on the newly created role of Director of Talent — the first time at Harrods that all aspects of talent have been brought together under one strategic remit. It’s been a fascinating opportunity to build and shape this function from the ground up, creating stronger connections between how we attract, select, and develop top talent that’s right for Harrods. A key focus has been aligning these areas to work seamlessly together, ensuring we act as true guardians of talent and continue to strengthen our high-performance culture across the business.
What is your prediction for the future of the TA industry?
Looking ahead, Talent Acquisition will need to evolve beyond a transactional function and become a true strategic partner to the business. The role will be to act as guardians of talent across the full spectrum — from internal mobility and executive development to retention and succession planning. Success will come from having deep knowledge and insight across all areas of talent, providing guidance that adds real value and ensures the business attracts, develops, and retains the right people for the long term.
In this future, TA will not only fill roles but also shape workforce strategy, anticipate organisational needs, and build pipelines of diverse, high-potential talent. It will require collaboration across all HR functions and business leaders, using data and insights to inform decisions and continuously improve the employee experience. Ultimately, Talent Acquisition will be measured not just by hires, but by the lasting impact it has on performance, culture, and business growth.
What projects are you planning on working on in 2026?
Leadership development programmes to retain and strengthen our leadership population.
AI in TA
TA operations
High performance employer brand
TA Data Metrics
TA assessment