David Bannister recently left River Island after a year as their interim HR Director. He runs his own consultancy, Empowering People Ltd, specialising in management and consulting in reward, performance management, change management and leadership, executive coaching and career coaching. He was previously interim HR Director at Wiggle.co.uk and, before that, Group HR Director at New Look.

We asked David five questions:

1. You’ve just finished a year at River Island. What has been your focus and why?
2. What do you think HR needs to focus on in the next five years in the retail industry and why?
3. What people-related challenges do you think the retail industry will face in the near future?
4. You reported directly to the CEO. What did you learn about how HR can better support the business?
5. You specialise in performance management. How is this area evolving in retail to better suit employees and employers?

Watch his answers below. The video is just six and a half minutes long, great to watch with a cup of coffee. Enjoy.

Enjoyed David’s interview? It’s part of a much larger HR in Retail roundtable in which we interview three experts, including David, on the challenges facing retailers today. Tune in now.