Over more than 25 years, Stephen ("Steve") Thomas has led programs designed to earn and protect corporate reputations. In 2022, Steve established TAVO Advisory to help organisations in Asia achieve valued results by providing counsel on complex matters relating to reputation, trust and stakeholder engagement. Steve was Head of Group Brand and Communications at AIA Group from 2012 to 2021. AIA, which is listed and headquartered in Hong Kong, is one of the world's largest life insurers. Prior to AIA, Steve was a Managing Director and Head of Corporate Affairs for Citigroup ("Citi") in China. Steve began his career at Burson-Marsteller (now Burson Cohn & Wolfe), a leading global public relations firm, working in the firm's Melbourne and Hong Kong offices. Steve's professional recognition includes being named multiple times in PR Week's Power Book list of the world's most influential PR professionals as well as the Influence 100, Provoke Media's annual compilation of the most influential in-house communicators around the world. In 2020, Steve was named the In-House Communications Professional of the Year by the Asia-Pacific Association of Communications Directors.

Steve is a Board Trustee of the Institute for Public Relations and from 2014 to 2020 he was Chairman of the Hong Kong chapter of the Arthur W. Page Society.