Online coupon company Groupon announced the election of investment executive and personal-financial expert, Mellody Hobson, to its board of directors, the company announced in a press release.

Hobson is president of Ariel Investments, a Chicago-based money management firm serving institutional clients and individual investors. She also serves as chairman of the board of trustees for Ariel's no-load mutual funds. Beyond her work at Ariel, Hobson has become a nationally-recognized voice on financial literacy and investor education, the company said.

Specifically, she is a regular financial contributor on Good Morning America, the featured consumer finance expert on Tom Joyner's Money Mondays radio program and a regular columnist for Black Enterprise. Mellody is a director of three public companies: DreamWorks Animation SKG, The Estée Lauder Companies, and Starbucks Corporation. In addition, she serves on the boards of various civic organizations including The Field Museum, The Chicago Public Education Fund and the Sundance Institute.