I design Beautiful Businesses, Whole Brands and Radical Callings.
After years creating ideas for businesses big and small, I made a decision: I only work with people and causes I believe in.
I design radical callings for those aching to use their work as a force for good. Ideas that live in people, businesses, communities, and movements. Ideas that give more than they take. Built to last. Built to serve. Rooted in soul, shaped with care, and made to matter.
I work with B Corps, non-profits, educators, activists, organizers, artists, advocates, anyone bold enough to follow their calling and make real change.
I believe people are ideas. So are businesses. Both are chances to build the biggest, most generous future we can imagine. One that makes beauty and trouble. Beauty, because the world needs it. Trouble, because the status quo deserves it.
I co-founded The Beautiful Design Project with Alan Moore. I created Whole Brand Thinking™ while serving as Chief Idea Officer at Barkley. I wrote the book on Whole Brands, Scratch: How to Build a Potent Modern Brand from the Inside Out.
But most days, you’ll find me leading the Center for Radical Calling, a non-profit helping people discover the work they were made for. Work born of truth. Built to disrupt. Designed to challenge the way things have always been done.
This is the work I’m here to do: helping people and organizations find their beauty and use it in radical ways.
If you’ve got an idea that won’t leave you alone or a feeling it’s time to start again, I’d love to talk.
What would your business look like if it were more beautiful?
What would your job look like if you saw business through a new lens?
What work were you born to do?
What do you want your legacy to be?
Businesses I’ve Partnered With
Microsoft
Ford
GM
Nissan
Reebok
Dairy Queen
Motel 6
Planet Fitness
Target
Hearst Media
Danone
Diageo
Nestlé
Kimberly-Clark
Smirnoff
Gallo
Anheuser-Busch
Hershey’s
Planet Fitness
Smart Car
Peugeot
Sony
Amazon
Energizer
McDonald’s
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Haribo
Cargill
Yoplait
Justins
Dior
TDK
Marmot
Hebrew National
AMC Theaters
U.S. Bank
Winnebago
Russell Athletic
MTV
Spirit Airlines
HSBC
Huggies
S’well
TimeWarner
SodaStream
Cadillac
David Fincher
Terry Gilliam
The Nature Conservancy
Museum of Contemporary Art
SAAB
Kyocera
Microsoft
Ford
GM
Nissan
Reebok
Dairy Queen
Motel 6
Planet Fitness
Target
Hearst Media
Danone
Diageo
Nestlé
Spirit Airlines
HSBC
Huggies
S’well
TimeWarner
SodaStream
Cadillac
David Fincher
Terry Gilliam
The Nature Conservancy
Museum of Contemporary Art
SAAB
Kyocera
Haribo
Cargill
Yoplait
Justins
Dior
TDK
Marmot
Hebrew National
AMC Theaters
U.S. Bank
Winnebago
Russell Athletic
MTV
Kimberly-Clark
Smirnoff
Gallo
Anheuser-Busch
Hershey’s
Planet Fitness
Smart Car
Peugeot
Sony
Amazon
Energizer
McDonald’s
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Notice
Muse by Clio
Forbes
Sustainable Brands
Advertising Week
AdAge
Adweek
Cannes Lion
D&AD
One Show
The Clios
Jay Chiat Strategy Awards
Cannes Lion
D&AD
One Show
The Clios
Jay Chiat Strategy Awards
Recommendations
Gareth Kay
Former Chief Strategy Officer, Goodby Silverstein & Partners
The world needs more people like Tim Galles.
Curious. Generous. Open and collaborative. Razor sharp. Broad interests coupled with exquisite taste. He's proof of the saying that to be interesting, you need to be interested.
Tim's thinking about, and advocacy of, the 'Whole Brand' is (unfortunately) much needed in a world of fragmented brands and organizations riddled with silos. His ability to bring simple yet provocative thinking, case studies and data driven evidence builds a clear case for brands as true organizing ideas, not simply superfluous window dressing.
Graham Wood
Co-Founder, Tomato
Tim is unusual in the field he works in, particularly because he's actually capable of thinking, making and doing. Very rare.
He's also actually properly inspiring (instead of "look at the latest Seth Godin quote i found" inspiring) because he can read, experience and understand things that intrigue him, and then use that experience and understanding to fuel the work he makes and the things he says and does, which in turn is infectious amongst those who are fortunate enough to work with him.
He doesn't discriminate between methods, process, concept, media, production and dissemination; everything is a possibility. He does not limit himself to worn notions and roles and because of this he makes things for people (rather than his folder or committees at awards), and people respond to those things. Most often with joy.
I hope I'm fortunate enough to work with him again one day.
Patrick Palmer
Managing Director, Purple Strategies
Tim is like the fine aged bourbon of creative and strategic minds. Raw ideas enter the top of his incomparable mental filter and emerge polished, nuanced, intelligently conceived, beautifully designed, and perfectly honed - yet still pure and potent down to the last detail. I'm not sure if it's that Tim sees things the rest of us don't see, or whether he just labors harder at his craft than most of us will, but I've not worked with a better conceptual thinker or more generous collaborator than Tim Galles.
Bill Hickman
Former Chief Growth Officer, Leo Burnett
Tim is the ultimate creative problem-solver. His thoughtful approach and incredible attention to detail and nuance made him an ideal partner of mine for more than two years. His work ethic and collaborative nature made working with him a joy and I would highly recommend his inclusion in any and all types of projects.
Meagan Dexter
Global Brand Strategy Lead, Spotify
There are so many wonderful things to say about Tim, it is hard to decide where to start. In short: I owe my career to him. He was my first industry mentor, my biggest advocate when I set my mind on moving to New York, and a person I still call on today when a problem requires a truly thoughtful mind. He makes strategy feel artful, and I hope to have a career as purposeful and inspired as his.