Toby Ralph

Toby Ralph is a global marketer, specialising in marketing communications, research, strategy and reviews, frequently with a political dimension. He has run advertising agencies, controlled or had input to $1bn in communications campaigns and sits on a range of small boards. He has worked on around fifty elections across three continents, including all federal campaigns for Australia’s second longest serving Prime Minister, John Howard. Internationally he has worked on democracy-related issues in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, Angola and Cambodia, and commercially in dozens of countries.

He has significant experience with giving practical advice, particularly in relation to strategy, advertising, PR, politics, research and communications. Clients have included Presidents, Prime Ministers, Governments, the United Nations – for whom he has been a Special External Advisor – as well as many boards and corporations.

Toby has been published by Penguin/Random House (Ballots, Bullets and Kabulshit, an Afghan Election) and Oxford University Press (contributing a chapter to The Oxford Handbook of Taboo Words and Language) as well as writing for numerous publications such as for The Saturday Telegraph, Crikey!, Meanjin, The Drum, The Herald Sun, The Age, Sydney Morning Herald, Marketing, New Daily and On Line Opinion

He is a regular guest on television and radio in Australia, including Gruen Planet, Gruen Nation, The Project, ABC Radio National, 7.30 Report, Weekend Today, 3AW, The Drum, Sunrise Weekend Sunrise, Insight, The Contrarians, 5AA, 2CC, ABC 666, The Feed, Today Tonight, Media Watch, 4 Corners and Q&A.

Toby is an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow to the University of Queensland, Ambasciatore di COPSE, an Italian humanitarian organization working in the third world, and a frequent presenter and public speaker.

He has been the subject of a WikiLeak, topped The Power Index’s ‘Five unknown people running Australia’, and was included in the inaugural BRW Power List as one of the fifty most influential people in Australian business.

Toby Ralph talks about:

“The business of politics and the politics of business.” Using stories and commercials from elections, Toby Ralph asks if business can learn from the rough and tumble world of politics. In politics it is all about the result – to come second is to lose – so every effort is made to win.

Toby Ralph is entertaining, engaging and thought provoking for anyone in business – in fact, for anyone.