Available to book
Melica Moshiri
Entrepreneurship
Resilience
Growth Mindset
Transform talent acquisition and leadership development with Melica Moshiri, speaker, AI talent strategist and entrepreneurship expert. Melica works with tech companies to optimise recruitment, build resilient teams and navigate AI integration, delivering practical insights backed by international experience across North America and Europe.
Inspirational Female
The Apprentice
International Women's Day
Female Empowerment
Digital Expert
Podcast
HR
Entrepreneur
Inclusion
Women in Tech
Women in Business
Founder
Start-up
BBC
Melica Moshiri is a talent partner and business founder with a strong track record of supporting high-growth AI and technology companies across North America and Europe. Known for her direct and practical approach, she brings insight into hiring, leadership and career development shaped by first-hand experience scaling startups and building international teams.
Melica is the founder of SkillTorch, a boutique search firm that works with early-stage and scaling tech businesses to identify and secure go-to-market, C-suite and technical talent. Her experience spans retained executive search, embedded recruitment and fractional leadership roles, working closely with founders to help businesses grow from the inside out. She also hosts SkillTorch Disrupt, a podcast focused on leadership, hiring and the evolving role of AI in business.
Melica studied Law with Business at the University of Brighton before starting her career in sales and recruitment. Her professional journey has since taken her from London to Los Angeles and back again, gaining exposure to diverse working cultures and fast-moving business environments. She has built a reputation as a top global biller and trusted talent advisor before going on to establish her own consultancy.
In 2025, Melica appeared on BBC’s The Apprentice, reaching Week 8 of the competition and gaining exposure in major UK and international media. She is now also a sought-after speaker, known for sharing practical insights on entrepreneurship, resilience, women in tech and personal branding.
With lived experience as a first-generation professional and female founder, Melica brings both relevance and relatability to her work, offering audiences a grounded perspective on navigating modern careers and building businesses in competitive sectors.
Topics, sessions and talks
Melica Moshiri unpacks what it really means to stay the course when life or business doesn’t go to plan. Drawing on personal moments of rejection and public pressure, she explores the power of grit, reflection and adaptability. This session offers a sharp, candid take on how to build inner strength, stay grounded, and move forward when everything feels uncertain.
From boardrooms to business pitches, Melica shares how real-world leadership often starts with empathy, clarity and tough choices. Forget theory, this is about stepping up when there’s no script, learning from failure, and cultivating trust across fast-paced teams. With humour and insight, she brings leadership back to its most human level.
Melica reflects on the journey from solo founder to running a high-impact recruitment firm in the AI space. With no sugar-coating, she explores the messy, thrilling and deeply personal side of building a business, from raising capital and hiring teams to weathering setbacks. A session for those ready to move beyond the idea phase and into execution.
In this empowering and down-to-earth session, Melica explores what it takes to lead and thrive as a woman in traditionally male-dominated industries. She speaks openly about confidence, bias, and self-belief, and why strong allyship matters. Her energy and relatability make this a standout session for mixed audiences looking to drive change.
Forget corporate jargon and curated feeds. Melica breaks down how to build a personal brand that resonates, builds credibility, and feels true to who you are. With humour and actionable insight, she explores what makes people memorable, and how to show up online and in person without feeling “salesy”.
Book Melica Moshiri to give your team practical, real-world insights on leadership, hiring and career growth, drawn from her experience scaling tech startups and building diverse teams across continents. Her engaging talks empower audiences with actionable strategies for success in today’s fast-changing business landscape—secure your session now.
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frequently asked questions
Something we've not covered here?
Email melica.moshiri@getapeptalk.com or call PepTalk on +44 20 3835 2929 (UK) or +1 737 888 5112 (US), and one of our speaker agents will contact you within hours to confirm Melica's availability and fees. If you can, please include your budget upfront – it helps us fast-track your request. It’s also helpful to know the date, format (virtual or in-person), location, and a bit about your audience.
Melica Moshiri draws on first-hand accounts from her career in recruitment, her experience founding SkillTorch, and her time on BBC's The Apprentice to ground her sessions in lived examples rather than theory. She structures her talks around specific decision points — such as raising capital, hiring under pressure, and navigating public setbacks — to illustrate broader themes of resilience, leadership and entrepreneurship.
Melica Moshiri speaks on resilience and growth mindset, real-world leadership, and starting and scaling a business. She is the founder of AI recruitment firm SkillTorch and a BBC The Apprentice 2025 contestant, reaching Week 8 of the competition.
No. PepTalk adds no booking fee, so you pay the speaker's fee and nothing beyond it. The service, from shortlist through to contracts and event-day logistics, is included. For repeat or multi-event bookings, PepTalk can agree preferential rates with your procurement team.
Share your event date, audience, format, objectives and budget, and PepTalk sends a hand-picked shortlist within 24 hours. Each suggestion comes with a profile, a fee and a recommendation on the strongest fit. Once you choose, PepTalk handles contracts, travel and logistics through to event day.
The typical fee range is the speaker's standard in-person fee in their home market, shown in their local currency. It moves with format, location, date and session length: virtual sessions and shorter slots usually cost less, while international travel and peak dates cost more. Send your brief to PepTalk and the team will confirm the exact fee in your currency.
Not all of them, and it makes no difference to your booking. PepTalk's network of 15,000+ speakers covers talent the team works with directly alongside speakers represented by agents and agencies worldwide. PepTalk approaches the speaker, negotiates the fee and handles contracting either way.
Three to six months ahead is comfortable for most events, and 12 months is better for large conferences, peak-season dates or one specific in-demand speaker. Shorter timelines are workable, and PepTalk regularly fills last-minute and replacement bookings within days. Availability is the constraint, so get in touch as soon as you have a date.
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