Madden was educated at The King"s School, Ottery Street Mary, and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he gained a Bachelor degree in economic geography (later upgraded to Master of Arts). He has a Master of Business Administration degree from Durham University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.
Madden began his career in the Department of Trade and Industry where he was Private Secretary to the Minister 1984-1986. He then studied Japanese at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and at Kamakura, Japan, before joining the Diplomatic Service. He served at the Embassy in Tokyo 1988-1992, at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Foreign and Commonwealth Office), dealing with European Union enlargement and Environmental issues, 1992-1996, and at the Embassy in Washington, District of Columbia 1996–2000.
He was Deputy High Commissioner in Singapore 2000-2003, Assistant Director of Information at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2003-2004, and Managing Director at United Kingdom Trade & Investment 2004-2006.
He was British High Commissioner in Singapore 2007-2011 and High Commissioner to Australia 2011-2015.
