Lisa Ronson’s tragic death has sent shockwaves throughout the industry. One of Australia’s top marketers touched the lives and inspired all corners of the marketing, advertising and media landscape. Today, industry leaders, including Lou Barrett, Kurt Burnette, Aimee Buchanan, Lara Thom, Belinda Rowe, Paul Brooks, Karen Ganschow, Liana Dubois, Mark Ritson, Will Easton and more pay their respects.
The industry has come together to remember an “iconic marketing leader” who was “smart”, “generous”, a “wonderful role model” and mum that had a “wicked sense of humour” and “contagious laugh”.
Medibank CMO Lisa Ronson tragically passed away over the weekend after a quad biking accident on her farm near Daylesford, Victoria.
The 52-year-old is survived by her son Ben and husband Chris, who is also a successful marketer.
The family bought their Vale Hill House property in 2019 with the ambition of creating their own countryside sanctuary filled with “love, laughter and the joy of family and friends”.
“The sudden loss of our beloved Lisa has left us in profound shock, with words falling short of capturing the depth of our grief,” Chris told the Herald Sun.
“Our hearts are broken beyond words. Yet, in our sorrow, we hold onto the memories of her spirit, her smile, laughter, and the love she so generously shared.
“May her beautiful soul rest in peace.”
‘A tireless advocate’
Ronson was one of Australia’s leading marketers and has held senior roles at CUB (now Asahi), Telstra, David Jones, Visa, Westpac, Tourism Australia, Coles and, most recently, Medibank, where she took on the CMO role in July.
“We are devastated by the news of Lisa’s passing,” Medibank CEO David Koczkar said. “Lisa was a brilliant, loved, and much respected member of our team at Medibank. Our thoughts are with her family and friends during this very difficult time.”
Medibank chief customer officer Milosh Milisavljevic added: “Lisa brought a ray of light into Medibank in four short months as our chief marketing officer, and has touched all of our lives with her huge heart, sharp wit, inspiring leadership and boundless passion for our vision.
“She was brilliant, loved and respected by all who had the chance to spend time with her. She became a fast friend to a lot of us, and we found ourselves feeling like we’ve all been friends for years.”
Tributes have been flooding in from across the industry since news emerged, including from the AANA, where she served on the board and made such a vast impact.
“Few have impacted our industry and its people more than Lisa. She leaves behind a legacy of outstanding work, talented teams, and strong friendships across the industry,” the AANA said.
“Lisa was a tireless advocate for marketing, our industry and building up the people around her. Her passion for developing talent is legendary. She invested countless hours educating, mentoring, coaching and speaking at events to share her knowledge and passion for marketing with young talent.”
The Media Federation of Australia added: “Lisa’s visionary work as CMO at organisations like Westpac, Tourism Australia, Coles, and Medibank inspired countless professionals and shaped the future of our industry. Her passion, innovation, and commitment will leave a lasting legacy.”
ADMA CEO Andrea Martens described Ronson as one of the very best marketers Australia has produced. “Her work was always fearless, bold, inventive, but never forgetting the reason we do it – the people,” she said.
Peers from across the industry remember Lisa’s “wicked sense of humour, contagious laugh and the ability to find a kind and constructive way through any situation”.
Those that knew her best speak highly of Ronson not just as a brilliant marketeer and leader, but a wonderful colleague who always made time to help others.
‘An inspiration and creative leader’
Ronson led Coles’ marketing team through the pandemic, starting at the grocer in April 2019 and departing in May last year.
“Lisa was an inspirational and creative leader at Coles who always put customers, our team and the community at the heart of her decision making,” Coles told B&T in a statement on behalf of the business.
“She deeply cared for those in the food and drink industry and was notably behind our What’s for Dinner campaign at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Ronson’s segments that aired during the nightly news, not only helped Australians who were cooking at home in their kitchens decide what’s for dinner each night, but also gave chefs whose restaurants were closed because of the pandemic the opportunity to share their recipes and work during a tough time for the hospitality industry.
“Lisa had a memorable impact on those she worked with and was passionate about being a great mentor and role model to many at Coles,” Coles added.
Paul Brooks, the GM of Coles 360, first met Ronson 15 years ago when she was GM of Marketing at David Jones and worked with her at Westpac and Coles, where she was instrumental in hiring him.
“Lisa had an enormous impact on the media, marketing and advertising industry but more importantly she had a positive impact on everyone that she has interacted with, she was caring, positive, energetic and a wonderful human being,” he told B&T.
“You don’t have to look very far to see the outpouring of tributes, messages, and posts from so many people talking fondly on their relationships and memories with Lisa. Still finding it difficult to process this devastating news, you will be missed by many.”
Ronson’s led campaigns during this era including the Value the Australian Way platform (see below).
Making an impact abroad
Ronson was a transformational leader for Tourism Australia from 2015-2019. During her tenure, she oversaw the aquatic and coastal campaign, including signing Chris Hemsworth as an ambassador, the World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards, its award-winning WHM campaign, Aussie News Today and the fantastic Un-discover Australia campaign in SSEA.
Leading a team of 60 and with a budget north of $100 million, her most iconic work was the Dundee Super Bowl campaign by Droga5 and starring Chris Hemsworth and Danny McBride (see below).
“She was a prolific contributor to the marketing industry and passionate about great culture, great people and great work,” Tourism Australia said.
“Our thoughts, love and support are with Lisa’s husband Chris, her son Ben, and her friends and colleagues throughout the tourism and marketing industry.”
Her time at Tourism Australia and elsewhere made an impact beyond Australia’s borders. Tourism Fiji CEO Brent Hill described her loss as “absolutely heartbreaking”.
“Lisa was a beautiful soul, such a talent and had time for everyone. I can’t really believe she’s gone – she was just a wonderful person who meant the world to me. Deepest condolences to Chris and Ben and her wider family. What a loss,” he said.
Nurturing the next generation
At Westpac, Ronson led a rebranding effort and fought valiantly to keep the Westpac Rescue helicopters program in the air, against internal opposition, producing powerful campaigns (see below). She worked with Karen Ganschow, the then GM customer relationship and marketing.
“Lisa was a fabulous and iconic marketing leader championing for the customer insight and then delivering in a bold and creative way,” Ganschow, now a lecturer and strategy consultant, told B&T.
“More importantly, Lisa was a wonderful friend and colleague. Lisa would champion and care for her teams as much as she would champion for great creative work. Lisa invested time to nurture the next generation of marketers whilst maintaining strong authentic connections with her industry colleagues and friends.
“The world is better place for her being here and there is a huge void in her too early departure.”
Other CMOS who have worked with or are friends share similar views.
“Lisa was an incredible marketer and was an inspiration and mentor to so many people,” Guzman & Guzman global CMO Lara Thom said.
Nestle’s marketing boss Martin Brown added: “Devastating news. My thoughts are with Chris and Ben. Lisa consistently gave back in our industry, a wonderful role model, colleague and friend.”
Mark Ritson described Ronson’s loss as “absolutely devastating”, adding ”Not only one of the best marketers, probably the nicest too. Had only good things to say about everybody. What a loss.”
Belinda Rowe, an MFA Hall of Famer who founded Optimedia in Australia, added: “An absolutely incredibly smart, generous and wonderful inspiring leader to many. I will miss her vibrancy in our industry and will be remembered always.”
The Marketing Academy’s founder Sherilyn Shackell added: “Lisa was a titan of our industry and a passionate advocate of The Marketing Academy. During the last decade she generously mentored over 25 of our Scholars and came to numerous Boot Camps, sharing her warmth and wisdom with our cohorts time and time again.
“We are heartbroken, and sending much love to her family as they navigate the loss of such a phenomenal woman. Our industry will be less bright without her”
Her impact beyond marketing
Ronson’s impact was felt well beyond the marketing function. She made friends across the agencies and media partners who she worked with, calling the likes of News Corp’s Lou Barrett, former Seven CRO Kurt Burnette, GroupM boss Aimee Buchanan and OMG’s Peter Horgan and the Nine trio of Michael Stephenson, Liana Dubois and Matt James as among her friends.
Michael Stephenson, Nine chief sales officer said: “Lisa Ronson was one of the most caring people I have ever met. I have had countless meetings with Lisa over the years, I can’t remember exactly what we spoke about in so many of them, but I can remember exactly how she made me feel. She was warm, friendly, caring and supportive. She had an incredible impact on me as a person.
Nine CMO Liana Dubois thanked Ronson for her kindness and the “incredible mark you left on all of us and for your enduring impact on the Marketing industry”.
She added: “Your light, utterly mischievous joy, smarts and compassion will be deeply missed. You gifted your abilities to everyone around you, sharing them so willingly with our community.”
In Melbourne, Nine strategy and former GM Matt James worked with Ronson, and said she was a revered and respected leader whose vibrancy and warm spirit will be so sorely missed.
News Corp’s sales boss Lou Barrett has known Ronson for 30 years and speaks highly of her. “I am absolutely heartbroken, Lisa was one of the nicest people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting in this industry. She was a true friend and I loved seeing her become one of Australia’s foremost and well rounded marketers,” Barrett said.
“She was so passionate about the industry and she was always incredibly gracious. She will be missed but never far from our thoughts and our hearts. My heartfelt condolences go out to Chris, Ben and her entire family.”
Meta’s Australian boss Will Easton told B&T Ronson brought infectious energy into a room and was always looking to push the boundaries.
“‘It can’t be done’ really wasn’t in Lisa’s vocabulary, she was always looking for a work around, a unique angle or a bit of magic to make the difference. And with that enthusiasm she unlocked creativity and energy around an idea that only Lisa could do.
Easton also paid homage to Ronson’s empathy and ability to listen. “She was always available at the end of the phone to provide advice and guidance when you really needed help,” he said. “Always willing to put herself in your shoes as opposed to just thinking about what was right for the business she was running. Thank you Lisa for everything you taught us and the incredible memories that will glow bright for eternity.”
‘A wonderful person & loyal friend’
He added: “She had an amazing instinct for creative ideas that moved and connected with Australians. Lisa cared deeply for her team and our agency teams alike, and she had the ability to energise a room every time she walked in. Above all, she was a tremendous human being and a friend to all.
“Her loss leaves an undeniable gap in our industry. We extend our deepest sympathies to Chris, Ben, and Lisa’s family.”
