Mellody Hobson

As co-CEO and President of Ariel Investments, Mellody Hobson is responsible for management, strategic planning and growth for all areas of Ariel outside of research and portfolio management. Additionally, she serves as chairman of the board of trustees of Ariel Investment Trust, the company’s publicly traded mutual funds. Prior to being named co-CEO, Hobson spent nearly two decades as the firm’s President.

In 2021, she co-founded Ariel Alternatives, LLC -- a new enterprise offering a patient, focused and non-consensus approach to private equity investing. Its first fund, Project Black, has a mission to scale sustainable minority-owned business enterprises to serve as Tier 1 suppliers to Fortune 500 companies—driving economic growth and equality from the entry-level to the boardroom.

Outside of Ariel, Hobson has been a leader in corporate boardrooms. She is the former chairman of Starbucks Corporation and its current lead independent director. She also serves as a director of JPMorgan Chase. She was a long-standing board member of the Estée Lauder Companies and chairman of the board of DreamWorks Animation until the company’s sale in 2016.

Hobson is a well-recognized financial literacy advocate. She wrote a New York Times bestselling children’s book, "Priceless Facts about Money," to demystify money for young readers. Her community outreach includes her role as chairman of After School Matters, a Chicago non-profit that provides area teens with high-quality after-school and summer programs. Hobson is also co-chair of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art and a board member of Bloomberg Philanthropies, the George Lucas Educational Foundation, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Center for Strategic & International Studies. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Investment Company Institute, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and past chair of the Economic Club of Chicago.

Hobson earned her AB from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs. In 2019, she was awarded the Woodrow Wilson Award, the university’s highest honor presented annually to a Princeton graduate whose career embodies a commitment to national service. She has also received honorary doctorate degrees from Howard University, Johns Hopkins University, St. Mary’s College and the University of Southern California. In 2015, TIME magazine named Hobson one of the “100 Most Influential People” in the world.