Speaking at an informal briefing to senior managers, she said: “We are having a particularly good time at the moment.”
The UK and Ireland operation was expected to continue to post £1.2bn-plus turnover and the client retention rate had risen from 90% to 95% over the last three years.
“And we’re talking about 10% organic growth for the first nine months of the year, which we hope will be reflected in the year-end results.”
Among the key trends of Sodexo’s performance in the UK over the last 10 years, she pointed out that food accounted for 75% of its business in 2005, but this had dropped to just 40% this year.
“That tells me the marketplace is changing and I believe Sodexo is very good at responding to these changes.”
She said that a major plank in the company’s strategy was based on outcomes.
“We believe that Sodexo impacts about 1m people every day, which means we can impact their quality of life. If we are impacting them positively we are affecting their employers’ outcomes.
“With our presence across a range of markets from the workplace to hospitals, prisons and the MoD, Sodexo is perfectly placed to take advantage of this trend.”