Sarah Diehl
Founder and Principal, Empowered Hospitality
- Title Founder and Principal, Empowered Hospitality
- Education B.A., Political Science, Yale University
Sarah Diehl is a leader and founder of Empowered Hospitality, a human resources consulting and recruiting firm specializing in hospitality. Empowered’s mission is to create workplaces where people thrive.
After beginning her career in operations with Hillstone Restaurant Group, Sarah transitioned into a corporate HR role where she grew to appreciate the positive impact of a strong HR function. After her role was eliminated, Sarah realized how many of New York City’s iconic hospitality businesses lacked experienced HR leadership, likely contributing to their struggles with compliance, culture, and employee retention. This realization motivated Sarah to find a way to support the hospitality industry more broadly by building a sustainable, scalable consulting practice. Since 2017, Sarah and her team have supported hundreds of hospitality businesses with over 15,000 employees, placed hundreds of candidates in full-time roles, and now total more than 20 full-time consultants and recruiters.
Sarah earned her bachelor’s degree in political science with honors from Yale University, and holds her SHRM-SCP, WSET Advanced certification, and CSW. Sarah was selected as a 2021 Tory Burch Foundation Fellow for her passion for building an equitable, collaborative, and socially conscious small business. She is also a contributing speaker for the FAB Conference, the James Beard Foundation, the Santander Cultivate Small Business Program, and the School of Hospitality Administration at Boston University.
Boston Hospitality Review Articles:
Connect on LinkedIn.