Shelagh Mooney lives in New Zealand and is a postgraduate Program Leader at the School of Hospitality and Tourism at Auckland University of Technology (AUT), where she lectures in organizational behaviour and human resources management. Her industry career began in restaurant operations and culminated in senior executive positions in various hotel groups, including the Savoy Group, Intercontinental Hotels Group and Hilton.

Noticing the lack of women and general diversity at these higher levels, Shelagh sought answers in research and began to participate in industry panels on inequality, including gender discrimination and migrant worker exploitation. In 2018 Shelagh joined the ATEED Tourism Steering Group to advocate for employers to provide training and development as well as the living wage. As a further way to create action for change, Shelagh and some AUT colleagues founded the HARM Forum (Say no to Harassment and Bullying). Driven by her desire for tangible change, Shelah is also a co-editor of ‘Hospitality Insights’ a bi-annual publication which provides accessible research for the industry on trending topics.