Lisa Osborne Ross serves as Edelman’s U.S. Chief Executing Officer. In this role, Ms. Ross leads the firm's largest region with 13 offices and more than 2,300 employees. She is known as an in-demand counselor to senior executives at Fortune 500, higher education, and government institutions.
Prior to Edelman, Ms. Ross served as Managing Director of APCO Worldwide’s flagship office for over 2 years, arriving there after a 15-year career at Ogilvy Public Relations. Over her tenure at Ogilvy, Ms. Ross held several titles, including Founder of the Multicultural Practice, Head of the Public Advocacy Group and Practice, and Head of the Public Affairs Division.
Prior to joining Ogilvy, Ms. Ross held several roles in the Clinton Administration. At the U.S. Department of Labor, she served as Communications Director for the Department’s effort to create and promote high-performance workplaces, and later created and directed the Office of Public Liaison under Secretary Alexis Herman. She also served as the Deputy Director of the bipartisan Federal Glass Ceiling Commission, and was a member of the inaugural team of the White House Office of Women’s Initiatives and Outreach. In her early career, Ms. Ross spent time at FleishmanHillard and at the Tobacco Institute.
Ms. Ross devotes considerable amounts of time to her philanthropic endeavors, particularly her efforts to build a better Washington and to empower women. She co-founded and led the Washington Area Women’s Foundation, which has raised hundreds of millions of dollars to fund grassroots organizations addressing the needs of women and young girls throughout the Washington metropolitan area. At Howard University, she helped establish a scholarship fund for students seeking careers in public relations.
Ms. Ross has served on numerous school boards and commissions, including Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School Board of Trustees, Marquette University Centennial Celebration of Women, LeMoyne College School of Communications, Catholic Charities of America, and the Washington Jesuit Academy. In addition, she serves in the board of the PRSA Foundation. She is a member of the Awareness Leadership Council for the Capital Area Food Bank and of the Diverse Leadership Group for the Ad Council.
Ms. Ross has received several awards including PRWeek Hall of Femme (2020), Savoy Magazine’s Most Influential Women in Corporate America (2019), Washington Women Who Mean Business (2018), PR Council Diversity Champion Award (2017), Marquette University Alumni of the Year (2012), Washington Life "Style and Substance" Award (2004), and the Washington PR Woman of the Year Award (2003).