Who we are
Ingenuity, fervour, candour.
The phrase ‘Res Publica’ was first coined in ancient Rome by Cicero to describe the relationship between the state’s institutions and its people.
It is the precursor of ‘public affairs’ and ‘public relations’. We named our firm Res Publica to reflect our belief that the fundamental nature of good communication – building trust through understanding – is immutable.
In a world fuelled by a 24/7 media cycle, brand transparency and organisations’ need for continual and sustainable change, our diverse team of senior practitioners specialises in building and protecting the reputation of our clients and their brands.
Our Leadership Team
James Tait
Managing Partner
Having worked across listed company financial communications, M&A, issues and crisis management, government relations, sustainability, corporate brand strategy, reputation management and public policy, James offers more than 20 years of communications experience. He began his career as a policy advisor in the UK Government before working in consultancy in London. Moving to Australia, James joined ASX-listed brewer Lion Nathan and was quickly promoted to Corporate Affairs Director. James moved back into consultancy in 2012 and is a director of the not-for-profit charity, Uplifting Australia. He has previously served on the board of the Australian Association of National Advertisers.
Aleks Rzadkowski
Partner - Strategy & Creative
Aleks balances strategic rigour and creative mastery to solve business challenges across a spectrum of communication disciplines. He brings extensive experience in business and marketing strategy, brand development, change management, strategic communications and end-to-end creative and design development for consumer, B2B and organisational initiatives. He draws on 15+ years spanning roles in management consulting (Accenture), agency creative and strategy (Ogilvy PR) and in-house marketing strategy & planning and strategic comms (Lion). Aleks is an Award School 2007 Top 10 finishing student, holds writing and directing for screen certification from AFTRS, and is an avid film-goer and hobbyist filmmaker.
Gabriel McDowell
Executive Chairman
One of Australia’s most highly regarded and well known government and public relations professionals. Gabriel’s work has won many accolades from the communication industry – including the top awards in both the UK and Australia. Head of Res Publica’s corporate and government relations teams, according to Crikey’s The Power Index, he has been behind some of the biggest lobbying coups in recent Australian history. He is highly experienced and skilled at reputational management and development, advising many corporations on M&A activity and through other transformational events and crises. He is a founding member and office bearer of the Australian Professional Government Relations Association and a non-executive director of SpinalCure Australia.
Nathan Quigley
Director - Corporate
Having spent nearly a decade on the front line of election campaigns across Australia, Nathan has emerged as one of the leading political communicators in the country. As Communications Director and later State Director of the NSW National Party he produced innovative and highly-targeted campaigns across a wide variety of platforms, and was recognised with a Reed Award for Best International TV Advertisement for his work on the 2016 Federal Election campaign. Nathan has wide networks in government and across regional Australia, and is highly skilled in a variety of communication disciplines from structured campaigns to crisis management.
Karina Lamb
Director - Corporate
Karina is a corporate storyteller and strategist with over 15 years’ experience in building and protecting corporate reputation. Karina prides herself on understanding investors, customers and communities and how compelling communication of brand, purpose and strategy drives reputation and engagement. She began her career working for some of Australia’s most awarded communication agencies before joining an ASX-listed wine business where she ran corporate communications. Immediately prior to joining Res Publica, Karina worked in corporate communication at the National Australia Bank (NAB) where she led projects across M&A, Wealth and Personal Banking and most recently held the role of Head of Communications for NAB’s digital bank, ubank.
Sean Aylmer
Associate Director
Sean is one of Australia’s most experienced and respected journalists, with broad experience at editorial and executive levels. As Editorial Director of Fairfax Media, he was the most senior journalist at the group for over four years and the publisher of iconic mastheads The Age, The Australian Financial Review and the Sydney Morning Herald. Prior to entering journalism he was an economist with the Reserve Bank. Sean’s expertise in Australian financial media is unparalleled, and he has cultivated extensive networks throughout both the corporate and media communities. He intimately understands the forces at work in today’s corporate environment and the dynamics that drive the media agenda.
Aki Rothberg
Director - Brand & Creative
Aki is a creative professional with a diverse background in design spanning marketing communication, broadcast media, fashion and advertising. Aki brings 15 years’ experience as a senior designer and art director in Copenhagen and Helsinki based design and advertising agencies, where he led communication and design programmes and campaigns for global brands including Gucci and technology house Danfoss. Prior to joining Res Publica, Aki led the internal design and content production studio at Nordea – Northern Europe’s largest financial services group – where he oversaw the company’s comprehensive rebranding. Aki enjoys applying a design philosophy to communication challenges across the corporate and consumer brand landscape.
Our values
While we care about many things in the course of our work, we value three above all else:
Ingenuity
From the Latin Ingenium, meaning the powerful application of minds or intellect. We bring together a smart, eclectic team of people, some right brain, some left, to deliver clever, commercial and culturally aware communication solutions.
But it’s not just about our grey matter; we practise ‘strategic empathy’ to really understand what drives our clients’ thinking and that of the people they exist for.
Fervour
So much more than just passion. It’s a strength of commitment, power and positivity that’s felt viscerally, and is impossible to fake.
We love what we do and pursue it with vigour, seeking solutions that stir equally strong feelings in our audiences; the kind that move people to action – fast.
Candour
An unusual frankness. There’s a forthright clarity in our counsel, delivered with care. While we understand politics better than most – we never play it.
We value substance over spin and seek simplicity in complexity.