Ray Kotcher is a Senior Partner and the Chief Executive Officer of Ketchum, a unit of Omnicom Group and one of the world’s largest public relations agencies.
Ray joined Ketchum in 1983 as Vice President, moved to President of the agency in 1992, and became CEO in June 2000. During his tenure as CEO, he has overseen a significant expansion of the agency’s breadth and depth of specialized communication services and the continuation of Ketchum’s award-winning record of excellence in the public relations industry.
In particular, Ray has helped the agency acquire three complementary businesses: The Washington Group, a lobbying and government-relations firm; Stromberg Consulting, a change-management firm; and Corporate Technology Communications, a technology-communications firm. He also has helped the agency spawn four leading-edge communications businesses: Emanate, a boutique public relations agency; Ketchum Entertainment Marketing, an entertainment, lifestyle and pop-culture marketing group; Concentric Communications, an experiential- and event-marketing agency; and Zócalo Group, a word-of-mouth marketing agency. In addition, Ray has helped lead the development of three critical agency offerings: Ketchum Interactive Communications, a service to help companies reach today’s online consumers through integrated and innovative digital-media solutions; Women 25to54, a program to connect businesses to one of today’s super-consumer segments; and Ketchum Influencer Relationship Management, an offering to link organizations with the key influencers who affect consumer perceptions.
Under Ray's leadership, Ketchum was named PRWeek's 2002 Agency of the Year and, in 2001, Ketchum and its clients were recognized with an unprecedented 10 Public Relations Society of America Silver Anvil awards, the U.S. industry’s highest honor. In the subsequent seven years, the agency's work for clients has garnered an additional 34 Silver Anvils – bringing the number of Anvils awarded to Ketchum through its 80-year-plus history to 107, a record in the public relations industry.
Ray frequently speaks and writes on a range of public relations issues, such as globalization, technology advancement and the shifting media landscape. He is a member of the PR Seminar and a trustee of the Arthur W. Page Society. In addition, Ray is the 2008 chair of the Council of Public Relations Firms. He received a Bachelor of Arts in English from the State University of New York at Geneseo and serves as a trustee of the Geneseo Foundation Board. Ray also holds a Master of Science in public relations from Boston University's College of Communication. He has been honored by that college as a distinguished alumnus and appointed to serve on its executive committee. He also had the honor of being invited to give the commencement address to the College of Communication class of 2006, an address that was published in the July 2006 edition of Vital Speeches of the Day. In January 2008, Ray was honored with Boston University’s 2007 Alumni Award. Also in January, he joined the board of governors of Nile Rodgers’s We Are Family Foundation, a leading nonprofit dedicated to building appreciation of cultural diversity.
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