Melody McLaren

Melody McLaren is Co-founding Director of McLaren UK, a creative business services consultancy, and is an Associate of the Doughty Centre for Corporate Responsibility at Cranfield School of Management. A graduate of the California Institute of Technology (BS, 1977) and Birkbeck College, University of London (MSc, Organizational Behaviour 2007), her eclectic career encompasses over 30 years of experience spanning a wide range of fields including research, writing, media relations, sales promotion, web development, social media and corporate responsibility campaigning in the US and Europe.

Trained as a classical pianist from early childhood to age 15, Melody was inspired to take up jazz piano in 2005 after attending a Global Music Foundation summer school. She continues to play the piano as well as supporting and documenting the work of the wider jazz community through photography and writing. In between her classical and jazz music stints she became World Hula Hoop Champion (1969) and set a Guinness World Record twirling 65 hoops simultaneously (1985) as well as playing competitive volleyball in the US and UK for over 20 years.