About Lena
Former head of strategy at two scale-ups, independent since 2018. I work from a small studio in Business Bay, Dubai, and with founders across the GCC.
Lena Hart
I help founders make the decisions only they can make.
Independent strategy adviser, Dubai
I work with one or two companies at a time, because the useful part of this job is paying attention.
Before going independent I ran strategy at two scale-ups through their Series B and C. I’ve sat on the side of the table that has to live with the decision, which is why I stay on for a month after we make it.
- years in strategy
- 12
- companies advised
- 40+
- sectors
- 9
The longer story
I started in pricing by accident. In 2014 I joined a Dubai payments company as its first analyst, and the first question I was given was why customers on the cheapest plan stayed longest. Answering it changed how the company charged, and I was hooked on the decisions underneath the numbers.
Two years later I was leading strategy there through its Series B. In 2016 I moved to a freight software scale-up as head of strategy and took it through a Series C, a new market and one painful product shutdown. I learned more from the shutdown than from anything that went well.
In 2018 I went independent, because I wanted to work directly with founders at the moment they decide, without a sales team or a junior bench in between. Northfield is still just me, by design. When a project needs more hands, I bring in one of three researchers I’ve worked with for years, and I tell you before I do.
I’ve lived in Dubai since 2013 with my partner, and our two teenagers grew up here. I think best on an early walk along the Water Canal, before the heat.
Career and credentials
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2012 · MBA in strategy and pricing
A Dubai business school, specialising in strategy and pricing. Thesis on how Gulf software companies set their first prices.
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2014–2016 · Pricing analyst, then strategy lead
A Dubai payments scale-up, from 40 to 220 people, through its Series B.
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2016–2018 · Head of strategy
A freight software scale-up, through a Series C, an entry into Saudi Arabia and the closure of a product line.
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2018–now · Northfield
Independent adviser to more than 40 companies in nine sectors, from software and marketplaces to consumer hardware and health.
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Alongside
Board observer at two portfolio companies, a mentor in a Dubai founder programme, and a regular speaker at founder events.
How I work
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One or two clients at a time
I keep my calendar thin on purpose. You get my attention, not a slot between other projects.
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I do the work myself
Every interview, every model, every session. No junior team arrives after the pitch.
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I stay for the consequences
Every project includes a month after the decision, because that’s when the real questions come.
Who I’m not right for
Saying this early saves us both time.
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Companies under 15 people
At that size you usually need customers more than strategy. Come back when the decisions get harder.
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You need a team of ten
If the work needs a large team on site for months, a bigger firm will serve you better, and I’m happy to suggest one.
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You want a deck for investors
I’ll help you make the decision your deck describes, but I don’t write pitch decks.
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The decision is already made
If you need someone to carry out a plan, you need an operator. If you need someone to agree, a two-hour session is cheaper.
In other people’s words
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Lena says the uncomfortable thing kindly, once, and then helps you act on it.
Priya RamanCOO, Arden Health (founder advisory)
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Killing three products felt like failure for about a week. Then the fourth one paid for everything.
Karim HaddadCEO, Kova
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We stopped pitching for logos and started being hired to design products. Lena gave us the sentence, and the nerve to use it.
Hannah ReidFounder and creative director, Studio Wren
Have a decision you keep putting off?
Thirty minutes, no preparation needed. Tell me what you’re deciding and I’ll tell you honestly whether I can help.
Taking one new client from February 2027
