Melanie Robinson | |
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![]() Commodore Melanie Robinson in February 2020 | |
Birth name | Melanie Suzanne Rees [1] |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Branch | Royal Navy |
Years of service | 1993–2023 |
Rank | Commodore |
Commands | Maritime Reserve HMS Express Wales University Royal Naval Unit |
Awards | Commander of the Order of the British Empire |
Alma mater | Cardiff University Open University |
Spouse(s) |
Commodore Melanie Suzanne "Mel" Robinson, CBE , ADC is a retired British senior Royal Naval Reserve officer. She was Commander of Maritime Reserves from February 2020 until retirement in July 2023. [2]
Robinson has a degree from Cardiff University. [3] She also has a Master of Science (MSc) degree in human resource management from the Open University. [4]
She was commissioned in Supplementary List of the Royal Navy as a sub-lieutenant on 6 January 1993. [5] She was appointed to the Trained Strength on 15 October 1994. [5] Her early career was as a warfare officer, serving in a number of frigates and minor war vessels. [3]
As commander of the Cardiff University Royal Naval Unit (now Wales URNU) and its training ship HMS Express, despite her claim to be the first (https://windsorleadership.org.uk/mel-robinson-biography), she was one of the first cohort of women to command a Royal Navy patrol vessel- still a remarkable achievement, so no need to over-egg it. [3] [6] [7] She transferred to the Royal Naval Reserve with the rank of commander in November 2015. [8] She was promoted to commodore on 4 February 2020, and was then one of four women to hold that rank. [6] [9]
Robinson was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2022 Birthday Honours. [10]
In 1998, she married Guy Robinson. [1] [11] Vice Admiral Robinson is a fellow retired Royal Navy officer whose last draft was with NATO as Chief of Staff to Supreme Allied Commander Transformation. [12] They have two children. [11] As an Executive Coach she founded Women in Leadership Consultancy Ltd in 2018 (https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/11213259/officers) which was dissolved in 2019. Her personal credo for Leadership (apparently without irony) is simply described on her LinkedIn page as: "Be gorgeous. Shine Brightly. Love life. A simple self-maintenance model I designed to transition from surviving the challenge of balancing work and life, to thriving in the opportunities that an inclusive employer like Royal Navy offered me across a 30 year career". https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mel-robinson-cbe_be-gorgeous-shine-brightly-love-life-activity-7078267529508315136--MSS/?trk=public_profile_like_view