Career Coaches

Scott is a Career Coach supporting students in the Full-Time programs by guiding them in their search for future careers, providing resources and tools, and building networks and career opportunities. Scott comes to Pepperdine with a Masters of Science in Executive Leadership and Change in Business, and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with Marketing and Economics. Scott has 10 years working in higher education and is certified Emotional Intelligence Practitioner in the EQi 2.0 & 360, certified Level 2 Council Facilitator, instructed social and emotional learning and development, facilitated career coaching and leadership development for Division 1, 2 and 3 Athletes and placed them with Fortune 500 Companies. Scott recently was the Career Department Head and Coordinator working with neurodiverse college students. 

Scott is also a 5th degree black belt in Isshinryu Karate and teaches classes weekly, while continuing to operate as Chairman of the Board for his nonprofit promoting complementary and alternative medicine for members of the community. As a former student athlete (soccer), Scott continues to enjoy competition playing Gaelic Football for the Los Angeles Cougars Gaelic Football Club winning multiple National Championships and local tournaments.

Ken Murphy is the Director of Professional Programs and Alumni Career Services, working with all of our part time students and alumni across all degree programs. He is also the executive career coach for our Executive MBA, President/Key Executive MBA, Executive DBA, and MSOD programs.  Previously, Ken led PGBS career services for all full-time programs.  Prior to his arrival at Pepperdine in 2016, Ken served for more than twenty-five years in a wide range of executive roles in medium to large international corporations, and was the founder and CEO of several successful management consulting firms, where he led large-scale global projects and managed teams in multiple business functions, including HR, recruiting, talent management, organization development, leadership development, M&A integration, change management, and career development.  He has worked with dozens of fast-paced, rapidly changing global organizations in the high tech, R&D, manufacturing, healthcare, military, government and academic sectors. 

Having coached, mentored, and trained thousands of individuals over several decades, Ken has deep expertise in developing and implementing career transition strategies for those seeking to discover, accelerate, and achieve their professional goals and life purpose.  With family roots in the military and prior service as a senior staff officer in the California State Guard’s Officer Candidate School (California Military Department), Ken also has a passion for supporting veterans navigating the difficult transition from military to civilian life.  Ken also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Pepperdine’s Graduate School of Education and Psychology.  He is currently completing his Ph.D. in Global Leadership and Change at Pepperdine University, and holds a Master of Human Resources and Organization Development degree from the University of San Francisco, along with a B.A. degree in Psychology from Chapman University.  

Karen is the Director of Career Readiness and Employer Engagement and in this role she leads outreach and employer engagement activities as well as implementing career development strategies to increase students’ career readiness across all programs.  Karen is a proven relationship builder and cultivator of a robust network that she calls upon to implement scalable pathways for recruiting of Pepperdine graduate business talent.  Using a high touch approach with employers, alumni and other external partners, Karen’s creativity and relationships have led to embedding key leaders into the student experience for things such as case competitions, career panels, speaker events with student organizations, and more.  Using her vast knowledge of business career paths and market trends, Karen works diligently to foster mentoring and targeted networking connections for students while disseminating that knowledge into action for the CPD staff.  Additionally, Karen prioritizes impacting students’ success through individual coaching by providing insightful and caring career guidance.

 In her free time Karen enjoys a variety of outdoor sports and activities, along with cooking, reading and “watching shows”.  She holds a BA in Sociology from UCLA, an MS in Counseling with an emphasis on Organization Development from CSUN and a Dimension Coaching career coach certification.   

Lauren is a Senior Employer Engagement Specialist with PGBS. In her 20 plus years of student services at Pepperdine, she started in recruitment and has worked in various capacities in career services. While her main focus is on employer engagement, Lauren has been a career coach, event manager and international student advisor. She partners with employers and alumni to support their recruiting needs and is dedicated to providing students with connections to career opportunities.  Lauren received her BA in Sociology from UCSB and is a fellow Wave with an MA in Psychology from Pepperdine. She loves to try new recipes and restaurants and spend time with family and friends.