The 2022 Women Leaders In Consulting: Melody Chen

Melody Chen is Associate Director at Berkeley Research Group LLC and brings over 15 years of consulting experience in antitrust, intellectual property, banking, finance and business insurance claims to the firm. As part of BRG's Business Insurance Claims group, she leads consulting engagements and work with testifying experts and clients in breach of contract, securities fraud, antitrust, patent infringement, business insurance and public policy matters.

She has led preparation of over a hundred business and homeowner claims in the recent California wildfires and has personally assisted dozens of clients to recover from devastating wildfire impact to their personal and business property, ecological resources and business income streams. Her clients include wineries, parks, restaurants, small businesses and homeowners impacted by wildfire or other natural disasters. She has also assisted clients in recovering hundreds of millions of dollars from product recalls and other business interruption events.

At BRG, Melody is actively involved with the Women's Leadership Initiative firm wide and has led mentoring efforts and hosted book clubs, dinners and networking socials.

What do you consider your greatest personal or professional achievement?

I am most proud of having raised three wonderful little men while navigating a career that has taken many shapes and forms and continues to evolve as I actively choose what is best for my family and work in each season of life. I set appropriate boundaries to guard my family time, while pursuing excellence in every aspect of my work.

What advice would you give to a female consultant just beginning her career?

Actively seek out mentors and sponsors who will advocate for you throughout your career These mentoring relationships can sprout from informal conversations with more experienced consultants to learn from their experiences. Consistently ask for feedback on your work outside of formal evaluation cycles, so that you can identify areas to improve and be affirmed in your areas of strength.

What's the best advice—personal or professional—you've ever received?

Set clear personal and professional goals, and stay focused on those goals. Many things fight for our time and attention, but having clearly defined goals will guide important decisions about where to invest our time and energy—when to say yes to opportunities that align with our goals, and when to say no to those that don't.