A wide and rich experience

With a wealth of experience in strategic planning, policy development and the operation of professional organizations, Ralph Palumbo offers his insight to Hillcrest’s clients with more than 20 years’ experience in government relations, with his experience as Director of Government Relations for the Certified General Accountants Association of Ontario and the insight he gained as Ontario Vice President for the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC).

Government relations and advocacy have been the focus of Ralph’s work for the past two decades. He has held senior leadership roles in private consulting firms, as well as in a range of not-for-profit and professional organizations. In these positions, he has been an effective advocate for his clients and established a successful track record working with the Ontario government to develop and implement policies by crafting and executing comprehensive public affairs strategies, where he excelled as a media spokesperson.

Ralph led the advocacy campaign to ensure that Certified Accountants that were qualified in public accounting were able to obtain public accounting licences. Similarly, the success representing Ontario’s insurers is a similar story. Through Ralph’s leadership of the insurance industry’s government relations campaign, many legislative and regulatory changes were introduced by the government.

Personal life

A member of the Ontario Bar, Ralph has earned high praise as counsel and adjudicator for a number of high profile organizations and served seven years as vice-chair and chair of the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal.

Community engagement is an important aspect of Ralph’s life, and he volunteers with a variety of local organizations, in addition to serving as a board member for two groups.

Ralph earned a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Windsor, and was admitted to the Bar at Osgoode Hall in 1980.