Peter Baker, Principal
Peter has a quarter of a century's experience in public relations following a career as a journalist in Australia and Britain and as a political adviser to a former Liberal Leader and a Labor Premier.
He specialises in the formulation and management of national and localised strategic communication campaigns for which he has won national awards for excellence. His skills include the preparation of submissions to government and he has extensive experience in government liaison, internal communications campaigns and issues management.
Between 1993 and 2001 he managed state and national components of federal election awareness campaigns on behalf of the Australian Electoral Commission and government relations for clients in optometry, physiotherapy and the pastoral industry. He also has handled issues as broad as major industrial actions resulting in industry closures, food product recalls and allegations of sexual assault against students.
Peter is a past Vice President of the Public Relations Institute of Australia in NSW. He was a member of the inaugural Council of the University of South Australia and has been a board or committee member of several community organisations in South Australia and NSW. He was the youngest person to be awarded the Australian Journalists' Association's Gold Honour Badge.
Bob Bastian, Account Director (Business and Marketing)
Bob's marketing knowledge and business acumen brings added value to strategies for clients which few other consultancies can offer.
His experience covers agribusiness, retail marketing and wine marketing in the USA. He also has experience in several major start-up ventures and is a founding shareholder in a new French-fry processing and marketing enterprise.
Bob has been Managing Director of:
- an international seafood producer, marketer and trader
- a national dairy products manufacturer and marketer which developed a new product which won Best Product of the Year.
- a national nut processing company with international and national retail sales.
He has sat on various national and state government committees and is a former Chairman of the Racing Industry Advisory Council of South Australia.
Karyn Foster, Account Director
Karyn's knowledge and experience in PR covers 20 years during which she established herself as one of Australia's most able organisers and promoters of special functions such as launches, fashion parades and product promotions.
She has excellent contacts in national media and has an enviable record of gaining publicity for clients' events and products.
She is the former chair of Come Out - the biggest children's festival in the Southern Hemisphere.
Karyn works closely with the South Australian Wine Press Club, Red Cross, Save The Children Fund, Flinders Medical Research Foundation, the Variety Club and the Australian Paralympic Federation.
Neville Sloss, Account Director
Neville's 25 years' experience in Sydney, London and Adelaide covers strategy and project development, issues management, writing, creative ideas and publicity campaigns.
Neville also is a competent trainer in media presentation skills and among his successes is a series of media training programs covering 500 principals for the NSW Department of School Education. In London during 2001 and 2002 Neville managed the crisis strategy for Interconnector -owner of the gas pipeline between the UK and Europe.
In recent years Neville has managed complex publicity programs for the Australian Sugar Industry, Employment National, Caltex Australia, Faulding, the Australian Electoral Commission and the AusIndustry Business Networks Program and implemented a successful marketing campaign for nine retirement villages in South Australia and Queensland. Through his work with the Bedding Plants Australia sector of the gardening industry he has developed what is arguably the best media contacts in the gardening media in Australia.
Damon Baker, Associate Director (International Business and Trade)
Damon specialises in providing advice to Australian clients wishing to build business relationships and pursue business investment or joint venture opportunities in East Asia. He also can offer advice on Australia's Free Trade Agreements with Singapore and Thailand (and future FTAs with East Asian economies), Australia's investment treaty obligations, dispute resolution, overseas commercial and corporate regulations and regulatory compliance.
He regularly travels to Asia, (particularly Thailand and Singapore), and maintains extensive legal and business contacts in the Asia-Pacific region and has consulted for Australian and internationally-based public and privately-owned corporations.
He is admitted to the NSW Supreme Court and High Court of Australia and has experience in managing issues in civil litigation, defamation, international law and trade and transport law. He completed a Masters of International Law at the University of NSW in 2007 with a Distinction average grade.
Damon was a winner of two Public Relations Institute of Australia Awards for Excellence in 2001 (Comprehensive Communications and Issues Management).
He designed and implemented a strategic communications and publicity campaign for the world's third largest cruise operator (based in Malaysia and with operations throughout Asia) for the Australia and New Zealand markets; consulted to an Australian public company with joint ventures in Hong Kong and the People's Republic of China; provided strategic communications advice for one of Australia's largest wine groups; assisted in writing chapters on aspects of Thailand's legal and regulatory environment for a business guide sponsored by a major international law firm and worked in a small team responsible for all issues management and public relations for Australia's largest transport task - the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
