As Chief Marketing Officer for SUEZ – Water Technologies & Solutions, Ralph Exton is responsible for providing leadership and program direction for the strategic marketing activities, communications, business development, digital marketing and business strategy.
Prior to his current role, Ralph served for six years as CMO of GE’s Water & Process Technologies business. Ralph joined the business in 1994 and held numerous roles with increased responsibility for product management, commercial operations, business development, channel strategy, digital marketing, global sales management, global key accounts, and M&A projects. During his time with GE, he was also the business program manager for the leadership development programs, which were designed to recruit, develop and grow future commercial leaders.
Ralph was elected to the Board of Trustees of the Water Environment Federation (WEF), an international organization of water quality professionals, for five years (2012-2017), where he served as Treasurer/Officer for three consecutive years and chaired the Audit committee. He was elected to the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Board Committee in 2020 and currently serving in this capacity.
Ralph is currently Co-Founder; Board Director of Partnering for Impact (P4I), a not-for-profit platform for influencers inspiring the water sector to achieve sustainability and resiliency goals, drive equitable economic prosperity, encourage the next generation of professionals, create innovations, and build research and development capacity.
Ralph was also the founding co-chair of the AIChE International Society for Water Solutions from 2012-2014. Additionally, Ralph is expanding Water Technologies & Solutions’ thought leadership in the digital industrial space and is currently a member of the Advisory Board for BlueTech Research, and on the Accelerator Judging Team of Imagine H2O. He has frequently been asked to speak and keynote at industry events and has participated in several think tanks and thought leadership sessions on the importance of global water issues.
In addition to his involvement as an advisor or board member in key organizations, Ralph is also a proud member of the Pennsylvania Water Environment Association, American Water Works Association, International Desalination Association, WateReuse Association, and Water Research Foundation.
Ralph earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Pennsylvania State University in 1987. Ralph has over 34 years of experience in the water sector and has dedicated his career to the protection of the environment and sustainability of our most precious natural resource, water.
