YOUR JOURNEY
The Considerate Group supports and advises hospitality businesses on how to operate more responsibly
Climate and Future-Proofing your Business improves your Financial Performance
According to reports by UN Global Compact and The Arabesque University of Oxford, a stronger Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance results in 90% lower cost of capital, 88% better operational performance, 80% better stock price performance, and 7% higher return of equity.
We offer a range of services to help businesses operate more responsibly – whilst also reducing their costs & increasing employee engagement (also reducing staff turnover)
These solutions include:
Con-Serve™ sustainability data management system
Comprehensive advisory services (strategies, policies, workshop, communications and more)
Guidance with reporting to various standards
It is our endeavour to work with our clients to find the best way forward together, developing strategies which adhere to International Frameworks as well as being adoptable into their daily operations. The Considerate Group’s client portfolio includes many forward-thinking and dynamic clients. The list continues to grow, as more and more operations broaden their business scope to include responsible practices.
Our core values motivate our dedicated team to work with businesses to achieve positive change. Collaborations & partnerships are key to sustainability, and we work with a wide range of organisations to build a stronger base from which to create change on all levels.
We are innovators in our field, always looking towards the future.
We are Considerate, Collaborative, Innovative, Dedicated, Honest, Leaders.
Meet Our Team
Benedetta Cassinelli
Managing Partner
Benedetta has over 18 years’ executive level experience of both online and offline travel markets with in depth understanding of hospitality industry as a whole. At Travelselect.com she looked after the business and corporate strategy and was Head of New Business when Travelselect was acquired by Lastminute.com. She then joined Western Oriental, a luxury tour operator, as Business Development Director where she led the online strategy and development of new revenue streams. She was also involved in the research and acquisition of three small tour operators to be integrated into the Western Oriental then listed on the AIM stock exchange.
After a two-year break dedicating herself to volunteering for Network 4 Africa, Benedetta joined forces with Xenia to advise hotels on bespoke sustainable strategies. This led to them to take over the Considerate Hoteliers Association.
She graduated with a BA Hons in International Business Administration from EBS London, and subsequently gained a Master degree in Policy Studies at City University, London.
Xenia zu Hohenlohe
Managing Partner
Xenia began her career in the hospitality industry 23 years ago and brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the company. She has handled the PR for cultural tourism Spain and international hotel groups such as Mandarin Oriental Hotels and Oberoi Hotels as their European Account Manager. She then spent three years at Amanresorts, first heading Sales & Marketing for The Americas & Europe, then building up the European Sales Office in London before moving into operations as Assistant General Manager for the Amanjena, Marrakech. Having developed a thorough understanding of the various operational as well as commercial aspects of the hotel business, she joined forces with Benedetta to re-brand and re-position the Considerate Hoteliers Association. Xenia is based in our Munich office and is fluent in five European languages, which positions the company perfectly for a European expansion.
Xenia’s motivation is her life-long concern for the environment and desire to create new systems for the integration of sustainable practices into the hospitality industry
She holds a BA in Communications from the CENP in Madrid. Xenia acts as an advisor to The Prince of Wales' Charities' International Sustainability Unit and is a Trustee of the Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth Remembrance Trust - a trust with a deed for agricultural education.
Richard Williamson
COO
Richard brings his financial, commercial and consultancy experience to Considerate. Having supported the initial fund raise, he subsequently became a Board Advisor to Benedetta and Xenia and in 2019 joined as the group COO. Richard’s experience includes investment banking, where he worked for Credit Suisse and JP Morgan Cazenove, the Big 4 accountancy firms, where he worked for KPMG both in the UK and Middle East and PwC. He has also set up and run his own consultancy business, Lodestar Partners.
Richard has worked with SMEs and start-ups for almost 20 years, providing strategic consultancy and fund-raising advice.
As well as supporting Considerate, Richard also brings his experience as a consultant at Edison and as a school governor.
Richard received a BA (Hons) in Physics from Oxford University and an MA (Oxon).
John Rogers
Head of Finance
John is an accountant with considerable experience in the development of financial and operational management in a wide range of consumer facing businesses. He has a particular interest in the successful implementation of new online strategies.
He held key leadership roles at Travelselect.com and Lastminute.com when they were achieving rapid growth of their online travel services.
Leyla Basacik
Senior Sustainability Advisor
Leyla has a keen interest in making sustainability data accessible, so that it can inform and inspire businesses in making environmentally and socially sound decisions that also make commercial sense. Leyla launched her career in sustainability at CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) in 2012, where she project managed the development of reporting framework for companies with agricultural supply chains. During this time she was also responsible for the annual revision of CDP’s climate change questionnaire which was sent to 5000+ companies globally. She started working for Considerate in 2015 where she was primarily responsible for developing and delivering Con-Serve. Since then, she has spent a year travelling, and also had the opportunity to work at the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the University of Surrey, where she contributed to a number of data-oriented projects to promote sustainability through tourism and hospitality. Now back at Considerate, Leyla is focusing on delivering advisory services and strategic projects.
Leyla holds a First Class BSc Honours degree in Environmental Science and International Development from the University of East Anglia, and a High Distinction Masters degree in Climate Change Adaptation from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia.
Katharine (Kate) Orszulik
Relationship Manager
Having completed her degree in European Studies in the UK, Kate began working in the tourism industry in France in 2004. She worked in operational and management roles in resorts in France and Canada, before returning to the UK. She then held management positions in hotels for Novotel in London for seven years in Front Office & Rooms Division. Kate later spent two years working in a hospitality management role in New Zealand.
Kate combines her passion for travel and experience in hospitality operations with a strong passion for sustainability. She manages the membership programme for hotels and suppliers.
Anton Kelly
Sustainability Analyst
Anton graduated from the University of Auckland with a conjoint degree in Philosophy and Ecology. During his studies he won two research scholarships primarily focused on using advanced statistical methods on biological data. Briefly working in the hospitality industry upon his arrival to the UK, he had been a financial assistant at King’s College London before joining Considerate.
Anton now brings his expertise in data analysis to the team, assisting in client relationship management, bespoke reporting, and the technical delivery of Con-Serve™.
Šana Rajkovic
Sustainability Analyst
Throughout her studies, Šana followed her interest in both sustainability and data analysis, obtaining a BSc in Environmental Sciences from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and the University of Montreal in Canada, followed by an MSc in Urban Systems Engineering from the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands.
Through consultancy projects, academic research and work experience, she has specialized in waste and data management (analysis tools and mass flow modelling). She also gained insight in to the hospitality sector when working in the Seychelles.
Fluent in four languages (German, French, English and Montenegrin), Šana supports clients across various countries and uses her data analysis skills for bespoke reporting and the technical delivery of Con-Serve™, as well as playing a key role in contributing to advisory projects.
Martha Brown
Sustainability Advisor
Martha is passionate about having a career that has a lasting positive impact and helps build global resilience. Prior to joining Considerate Group, Martha worked as an Environmental Consultant at Mott MacDonald with multidisciplinary environmental impact assessment/management and coordination experience. Martha has experience working in Corporate Finance and the Civil Service.
She was awarded a scholarship to study for a BSc in Geography at the University of Leicester, and then went on to complete an MSc in Water and Environmental Management at the University of Bristol, where she was awarded a distinction and award for best taught component.
At Considerate Martha specialises in project management and also supports the team with both advisory and Con-Serve™.
Isaac Pelham-Chipper
Sustainability Advisor
Through his education, Isaac has pursued his keen interested in sustainability, graduating his BA Geography Degree with first-class honours from the University of Plymouth, with a distinct focus on sustainability and eco-tourism. He then went on to obtain a distinction in an Environmental Engineering and Hydrology MSc from the University of Surrey.
Before joining Considerate Group, Isaac worked at Thames Water managing both business improvement workstreams and operational infrastructure improvement projects for the clean-water and wastewater sectors.
For Considerate, Isaac lends a hand to coordinating projects and also provides advises on sustainability.
Sujaan Punja
Marketing Executive
Sujaan’s passion for hospitality started through her involvement in events and theatre at Marlborough College, she then went on to complete a degree with honours in Hospitality Management with a specialisation in Luxury Brand Management. During her studies she had the opportunity to work at Gleneagles Golf Resort in Scotland and Hemingways Collection in Kenya, where she learnt a great deal about the importance of the environment in the tourism industry.
Sujaan’s hospitality career, appetite for travel, cultural background, and her upbringing in Kenya has really driven her passion for sustainability; especially in the hospitality sector.
At Considerate Group Sujaan manages our social media channels and with the membership program along side Kate.
Budd Nicholson
Customer Success Manager
Budd graduated with a First-Class Honours degree in Biology from the University of Bath in 2018. Particular focus of his studies were on food security and the effects of climate change on global food supply, a theme particularly relevant to the hospitality industry. Prior to joining us Budd worked as a Business Development Manager for a specialist environmental recruitment consultant in Melbourne, Australia. As well as this, he completed his placement year with a Craft Brewery from the Czech Republic where he was a Sales & Marketing Executive.
Having worked in various aspects of the hospitality industry, Budd combines his knowledge and passion for sustainability to change the mentality of consumption in this industry.
At Considerate, Budd is our Customer Success Manager and is responsible for ensuring our clients adopt sustainable practices whilst delivering excellent guest experiences.
Nick Walsh
Sustainability Analyst
Nick spent four years studying Ecological and Environmental Sciences with Management at the University of Edinburgh, where he learnt about the importance of sustainability and science-based policy making to reduce the impact we are having on the natural world. Following a year’s break from education, Nick chose to specialise in Ecotourism at master’s level at Edinburgh Napier University, building on his experience working in the tourism industry for Preferred Travel Services.
Having grown up in coastal Catalonia, Nick speaks Spanish, Catalan and French and has seen first-hand the impact that unregulated mass tourism and overcrowding can have on local regions, and is passionate about helping the hospitality industry tackle the challenge of reducing the environmental cost of tourism.
At Considerate, Nick brings his expertise in data analysis, as well as his ecological and environmental knowledge, working on Con-Serve™, delivering bespoke reports, and supporting the team’s advisory work.
Advisory Board
Professor Graham Miller
Chairman - Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Surrey
Carlos Couturier
Founder, Habita Hotels
Alice Daunt
Founder, Daunt Travel
Rudi Kull
Founder, Kull & Weinzierl Hotels & Restaurants
Mark Britton Jones
Hotel Business Development & Lecturer
Justin Mundy
WWF Trustee, Strategic Adviser to the Capital, Science & Policy Practice at Willis Towers Watson and Distinguished Fellow, World Resources Institute
Partners
We are proud to be working with the following companies and organisations:
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Hotel 360 is the UK’s leading hospitality event dedicated to increasing hotel profitability! Featuring 500 world-class suppliers, 320 inspirational seminars, exclusive offers and much more, the show will connect hospitality professionals with the solutions that are forming the future of the ever-evolving industry. The best part? Tickets are FREE and you can register at hotel360expo.co.uk.
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HOSPA is the Association that helps hospitality’s Finance, Revenue Management and IT professionals to develop their careers, network with colleagues and keep up-to-date with industry trends and developments. We offer a wide and growing range of opportunities for members, from meetings addressing specific topics to webinars; from extensive professional resources to the latest industry data through HOSPA’s monthly magazine The Overview.
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ZEB is an ESCO based in Athens, Greece. Through their integrated services, they help organizations become greener and more energy efficient. ZEB ranks amongst its clients some of the largest corporations in Greece from the service and industrial sector. ZEB offers specialized energy services in: energy performance contracting; energy project finance; energy management; energy audits; green building certifications; energy strategy and planning, and distributed energy generation.
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The University of Surrey is a global community of ideas and people, dedicated to life-changing education and research. They provide exceptional teaching and practical learning to inspire and empower their students for personal and professional success. Through their world-class research and innovation, they deliver transformational impact on society and shape future digital economy through agile collaboration and partnership with businesses, governments and communities.
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DHYBRID offers turn-key solutions as well as tailored control systems for your hybrid energy supply. They combine conventional energy supply, like diesel generators with renewable energy supply and storage technology, to significantly reduce energy costs, CO2 emission and environmental pollution of the existing power generation.
DHYBRID has provided installations for the leading hotel brands around the world. DHYBRID and Considerate Hoteliers joined forces in to provide a unique solution for the hospitality industry, where energy data from their systems is fed directly into the Con-Serve™ data management system by Considerate Hoteliers. Ultimately, end users have total control on their energy resource consumption. -
EpiSensor's Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) Platform makes it easier than ever to collect data, so clients can make better decisions, reduce cost and improve sustainability. Considerate Hoteliers uses Episensor technology in many of their installations where clients require live data feed and sub-metering solutions.
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Cross River Partnership (CRP) is a public-private partnership that was originally formed to deliver cross-river infrastructure projects such as the Millennium Bridge. CRP has since diversified to deliver a wide range of externally-funded, multi-partner regeneration projects.
CRP is currently delivering a range of regeneration programmes in the central London sub-region, which each contribute to the achievement of one or more of four objectives: sustainable employment opportunities; economic growth and prosperity; air quality and carbon reduction; and making places that work. -
SmarterDharma is a social enterprise that facilitates behavioural change for a sustainable future. It inspires, empowers and enables organisations, policy makers and communities to progress towards decision making for addressing and mitigating climate change challenges, globally.
Through its work with the hospitality and tourism industry, Smarta Dharma helps realise the potential that the industry holds in shaping environmental, social and economic growth for India and the world. -
NOW is galvanising the industry to use the power of business to be a Force for Good. Join the NOW Force for Good Alliance of inspiring companies that support what matters - accountability and transparency to keep the confidence of customers and a sustainable travel experience to make a positive difference.
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CleanConscience is a not-for-profit organisation offering the UK hotel industry a chance to reduce its environmental impact and save lives. Collected soap is sorted, sterilised, reshaped and distributed to those in need of sanitation. Recovered plastics are baled and sent for recycling. Impact is measured and reported. Join CleanConscience and your hotel can convert tonnes of waste into a meaningful, sustainable programme that will be embraced by employees and admired by guests. Programme fees will be bespoke, based on your establishment's requirements and to suit your budget.
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Slow Food is a global, grassroots movement with thousands of members around the world that links the pleasure of food with a commitment to community and the environment. The aim of Slow Food UK is to seek and promote a better way to eat, celebrating local food traditions and protecting UK’s edible biodiversity. Considerate Hoteliers and Slow Food UK offer one another mutual support, with Slow Food UK being involved in Considerate Hoteliers’ Annual Awards, setting out criteria and acting as judge for the Slow Food Chef of the Year. Through this initiative, Slow Food UK and Considerate Hoteliers hope to find a new chef champion to inspire and promote the values of a more sustainable, cleaner and better food in hospitality.
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Plan Zheroes aims to inspire organisations to become ‘zero food waste heroes’. To help them achieve this goal they have developed an online, interactive map to link up organisations who can donate surplus food with those who really need it. This includes a huge range of charitable organisations working with the estimated 4 million people in the UK suffering from food poverty.
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The Carbon Trust is a world-leading not-for-profit organisation helping businesses, governments and the public sector to accelerate the move to a sustainable, low carbon economy through resource reduction, energy-saving strategies and commercialising low carbon technologies. Our mission is to tackle climate change by accelerating the move to a sustainable, low carbon economy that delivers jobs and wealth. We can help organisations put sustainability at the heart of their business strategy and gain a competitive advantage in the market.
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WRAP - WRAP is the UK's leading delivery body for resource efficiency. It was set up in 2000 to help recycling take off in the UK and to create a market for recycled materials. Over the last decade, WRAP has helped and continues to help governments devise strategies such as the Food Waste Reduction Map - designed to help companies to measure and report consistently and with confidence. WRAP has also created a campaign called Guardians of Grub to encourage the entire Hospitality and Food Service industry to come together to eradicate food waste once and for all. The campaign aims to spur businesses into action and reduce annual food waste throughout our industry by 100,000 tonnes by the year 2025. CH is a supporter of WRAP's Food Waste initiatives encouraging hospitality outlets such as hotels to recycle, use less and cut back. Target – zero waste to landfill.
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The Travel Foundation is an independent charity working with the travel industry towards a sustainable future. They do this by working with partners in destination countries on projects that benefit businesses, local communities, the environment and holidaymakers. They turn what they learn into tools, training and business support to encourage industry-wide changes towards sustainable tourism.
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The International Tourism Partnership (ITP) brings together the world's leading hotel companies to provide a voice and authority on environmental and social responsibility in the industry. The charity demonstrates in a very practical way that environmental and social responsibility makes good business sense. ITP does this by highlighting best practice, offering a range of practical products and programmes and tackling emerging sustainability issues through its collaborative working groups.
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Green Hotelier is the leading source of information on the sustainable and responsible agenda within the hotel industry. As the key communication tool of the International Tourism Partnership, Green Hotelier has a serious commitment to delivering accessible, expert and honest content. Whether a hotelier looking to 'green' your property, a responsible tourism student, a sustainability commentator or someone simply looking to keep on top of the latest industry news, this free online publication provides heaps of helpful information.
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The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) is the forum for business leaders in the Travel & Tourism industry. With Chief Executives of some one hundred of the world's leading Travel & Tourism companies as its Members, WTTC has a unique mandate and overview on all matters related to Travel & Tourism. WTTC works to raise awareness of Travel & Tourism as one of the world's largest industries, supporting 260 million jobs and generating 9 per cent of world GDP.
Careers
There are no positions currently available at The Considerate Group. If you are interested in a career with us, please send your CV and cover letter to jobs@considerategroup.com and we’ll contact you should a suitable opportunity arise at a later date.
The Considerate Group is an equal opportunities employer that values diversity and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons regardless of their race, sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, gender identity or age.
