Melissa McElfresh

I can barely believe it, but my 8-year California rumspringa has come to an end. My family and I are back in Chicago — my hometown. Saying goodbye to some of the most incredible friends at INNOCEAN USA a few weeks ago was tough (and deliciously doughnut-filled), but it’s time for this next chapter to be a lot closer to my family. I spent the last few years soaking in the sun, building a PR function from the ground up, learning from incredible leaders, freelancing for some amazing brands and agencies, and asking "How's your day going?" behind the register at Trader Joe's. Now I'm looking to bring my hardworking, always-fun energy — plus two decades of marketing communications storytelling and strategy — to a brand, agency, or company ready to build something bold.

A new chapter for DCL Logistics. ✂️ 🎉 We're proud to officially celebrate the ribbon-cutting of our new Ramona fulfillment center, our 7th U.S. facility and another step forward in expanding our nationwide fulfillment network. This milestone wouldn't have been possible without the dedication, collaboration, and hard work of so many teams who helped bring this facility from vision to reality. 🩵 Thank you to everyone who played a part in planning, building, and launching our newest location. Here's to the next chapter of growth and the opportunities ahead!

What if the strongest thing a woman can do isn't push harder, but stop carrying what was never hers to hold alone? After a near-fatal childbirth experience and decades leading innovation at the highest levels of business, Rashmi Raghavendra shares a powerful truth: overfunctioning isn't strength, it's survival. In her 2025 TEDx Sammamish Women talk, Rashmi challenges the cultural expectations that drive women to exhaustion and offers a new blueprint for rebuilding, reinforcing, and rising whole. 🎥Watch Rashmi’s full talk: https://lnkd.in/gwEqZ4sF

I’ve got big news: Today marks my official first day as a full-time Fractional CMO and agency owner! For nearly 15 years, I’ve run CPR Creative as a side project and springboard for my corporate career. It taught me an incredible amount as I learned to navigate new industries, tackle difficult and time-sensitive challenges, and stretch my skillset outside of what I did in my 9-5. After my recent layoff—my third in four years—I stopped to reassess what on earth I was doing. These layoffs happened at companies I was a rock star at: ones where I’d been promoted or on promotion tracks; one where I drove $40M in marketing attributed pipeline in one year (a whopping 60% of total pipeline); others where I launched incredibly successful service lines and relaunched brand identities; hell, in that time I rebuilt one entire website solely by myself (no agency!), and in another I relaunched a full website AND a major event-driven microsite in just 7 months. At the end of the day, I was so proud of what I’d done, but so frustrated with the state of marketing and the endless grind of full time. I was tired of feeling completely out of control with my fate, no matter how well I did. And the job market? Oof. Endless interviews only for the role to be paused. Making it to the final two and not being chosen. Hiring managers talking about replacing their teams with AI. Companies that just did major rounds of layoffs. Several interviews only for the company to ghost me. It was bleak. So after all of this stress and uncertainty and craziness, one day I felt a sudden sense of peace and relief descend. What if I could have more control over my fate? What if I could choose companies I truly believed in, and take on challenges I truly wanted? What if I could build a safety net for myself, for my family, and for my future? Despite all my years with CPR Creative, now was finally the time I was ready to make the jump. This week, I’m starting as Fractional CMO for an amazing company with an incredible history and so much opportunity. I’m so excited to get started, and to share more as I get into things. And I’m so excited to see what other opportunities are out there. At CPR Creative, I’m focusing on the things that I truly love: - Fractional leadership & advisory services  - Branding & positing - Content & search strategy - Go-to-Market & demand gen From full-funnel programs and competitive positioning, to SEO/GEO/AEO strategy and content writing, to team architecture and hiring, I bring nearly 20 years of award-winning, game-changing, genuinely heartfelt experience to every project and every client. If you or someone you know is looking to drive real revenue, build real brands, and take their marketing to the next level, let’s talk: www.cprcreates.com

Something has shifted. A year ago I would have told you that going from a real product idea to something users rely on meant eighteen months, a full engineering team, and a lot of luck. For the people I've been working with, that's no longer true. A radiologist fighting with an AI chat window for months had a HIPAA-scoped, production-grade product six weeks later. A healthcare founder building eligibility clearance for in-home care and hospice shipped HIPAA-compliant from day one, without the compliance team or six-month security runway that usually requires. A wellness founder with a five-week launch deadline shipped her full marketplace on time and migrated seven years of content without losing a post. What I bring is The Collective, a way to move from idea to reality without the cost and speed compromises that used to make "build it" feel risky. What I'm not good at is finding the next person who should be building right now and doesn't know there's a path that doesn't require hiring eight engineers and waiting two years. Which is why I'm so glad to welcome Lindsey Harvey to The Collective as SVP of Partnerships. Lindsey has spent her career on the commercial side of complex technology sales, and she joined because she saw the same thing I did: most of the people who need this don't know it exists yet. She'll find the right people to help. She'll ask the hard qualifying questions before we commit either side's time. And when we're not the right fit, she'll say so, which is rarer in partnerships than it should be. If you've been sitting on a product, or staring at an engineering problem that doesn't pencil out the legacy way, talk to Lindsey. That's the work now. Welcome in, Lindsey!

Something has shifted. A year ago I would have told you that going from a real product idea to something users rely on meant eighteen months, a full engineering team, and a lot of luck. For the people I've been working with, that's no longer true. A radiologist fighting with an AI chat window for months had a HIPAA-scoped, production-grade product six weeks later. A healthcare founder building eligibility clearance for in-home care and hospice shipped HIPAA-compliant from day one, without the compliance team or six-month security runway that usually requires. A wellness founder with a five-week launch deadline shipped her full marketplace on time and migrated seven years of content without losing a post. What I bring is The Collective, a way to move from idea to reality without the cost and speed compromises that used to make "build it" feel risky. What I'm not good at is finding the next person who should be building right now and doesn't know there's a path that doesn't require hiring eight engineers and waiting two years. Which is why I'm so glad to welcome Lindsey Harvey to The Collective as SVP of Partnerships. Lindsey has spent her career on the commercial side of complex technology sales, and she joined because she saw the same thing I did: most of the people who need this don't know it exists yet. She'll find the right people to help. She'll ask the hard qualifying questions before we commit either side's time. And when we're not the right fit, she'll say so, which is rarer in partnerships than it should be. If you've been sitting on a product, or staring at an engineering problem that doesn't pencil out the legacy way, talk to Lindsey. That's the work now. Welcome in, Lindsey!