With more than 17 years of experience across global brands in retail, entertainment, media and hospitality, Helina Thompson-Hartley is Senior Director of Events at Emota, where she leads a team of more than 50 people delivering events for a global pharmaceutical account.

In 2026, Helina graduated from the Fast Forward 15 mentorship program and was named a C&IT A-Lister.

Her career includes Head of Events roles at Specsavers and THG, a role as Project Lead on Ain Dubai and a period as Events Editor for BBC Children's. She holds a BA (Hons) in Event Management.

Outside work, Helina is known in the industry as The Bionic Events Woman, a name she adopted after undergoing two hip replacements in the past year. She now uses the platform to speak and mentor on resilience in events leadership. Outside work, she enjoys spending time with her family, her dogs and on the tennis court.