Laurel Powers-Freeling

Laurel Claire Powers-Freeling (née Powers, born May 16, 1957, Michigan, United States) is a British businesswoman also involved in music charities, education-related activities and public service.

Powers-Freeling grew up in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. She holds an AB cum laude in Economics and Physics from Columbia University and a Masters in Finance and Applied Economics from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Powers-Freeling started her professional career at Price Waterhouse New York and Boston as a part-time management consultant while studying at the MIT Sloan School of Management, having worked for Clinique Laboratories Ltd (a division of Estee Lauder) and in administrative roles at Price Waterhouse before and during her undergraduate study. Upon leaving MIT, she joined McKinsey & Co in Atlanta and London (1985–1989), working in some eleven countries during her tenure supporting financial services companies. . She then moved to Morgan Stanley in Corporate Finance (1989–1991) International in London, where she focused on Corporate Finance for European insurers (1989–1991), leaving to become Director of Corporate Strategy at one of her clients, Prudential plc (1991–1994). Having helped shape the strategy that set the Pru on a course of Asian expansion, Powers-Freeling was recruited to be the Group Finance Director of Lloyds Abbey Life (1994–1997) and joined Lloyds Bank (later Lloyds TSB) when it fully acquired Lloyds Abbey Life (1997–2001), becoming Finance Director of Lloyds TSB Retail Bank, and later the Managing Director of the Wealth Management Division. In 2001 she joined Marks & Spencer Plc as the Chief Executive of its financial services business, also serving as a Group Executive Director on the main board of M&S and overseeing the early development of M&S’s on-line retail offering (www.marksandspencer.com). She launched the M&S Money brand and other products, leaving M&S in 2004 when the financial services business was sold to HSBC as part of a successful defence strategy to fend-off a hostile takeover bid launched by Sir Phillip Green. She then became an Executive Director of American Express Europe Ltd. and Senior VP for American Express's UK consumer card business, launching the American Express RED credit card in conjunction with the Global Fund to fight Aids in Africa. From 2007-2009 she was Group CEO of Dubai First International.

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