Rob Flaherty

Rob Flaherty is Senior Partner, Chief Executive Officer of Ketchum, one of the world's top communications firms and PRWeek's 2012 Agency of the Year. Flaherty leads Ketchum's nine-member Worldwide Executive Committee to guide the strategy, client service and performance of the agency. Since joining Ketchum in 1989, Flaherty has been involved in all aspects of the firm’s business, including having successfully led its largest office, one of its global practices and several of its largest client engagements. Flaherty became President of the agency in 2008 and today is one of the industry’s most sought-after client counselors. During his tenure, Flaherty has counseled some of the world’s largest companies and brands, including IBM, FedEx, Philips and Pfizer. As a client counselor, Rob specializes in corporate positioning and issues management. He has helped companies prepare for and respond to challenging situations ranging from product liability and airline accidents to data security and antitrust litigation. He also has played a lead role in growing the firm’s client base. Rob serves on the executive committee of the board of the Institute for Public Relations and on the Agency Management Committee of the Council of Public Relations Firms. In addition, he has been the chair of the Council’s Critical Issues Forum for the past six years. He is a senior judge of the Public Relations Society of America’s Silver Anvils and served as the co-chair of its 2012 international conference. He is the senior leader of the agency’s relationship with the World Economic Forum and a frequent facilitator for its annual summit in Davos, Switzerland. He also serves on the advisory board of directors for Room to Read, Ketchum’s global pro bono partner. Prior to Ketchum, Rob worked at Burson-Marsteller in New York. Prior to that, he was Director of Public Relations for the F.X. Matt Brewing Company in Utica, N.Y. He is a graduate of Utica College of Syracuse University.