Adweek published exclusive content, reporting WPP Media appointed a US Chief Client Officer, a newly created role.
The appointment underscores how White holding companies have orchestrated the commoditization of Adland, whereby people, places, and practices are repetitive, redundant, and replaceable.
The phenomenon also applies to C-Suite executives, as the new WPP US Chief Client Officer has held senior-level roles at Publicis Groupe, Dentsu, and the White holding company formerly known as IPG.
In short, the same White bodies shift between global holding companies, perpetuating exclusivity and cookie-cutter corporate cultures.
At some point, AI should be utilized to eliminate C-Suite positions too.
EXCLUSIVE: WPP Media Appoints Angela Steele as US Chief Client Officer
Steele will step into the role later this month, according to an internal memo obtained by ADWEEK
By Kendra Barnett
The media arm of British advertising behemoth WPP has appointed Angela Steele as its U.S. chief client officer, a newly formed role.
Steele joins from WPP’s French rival Publicis Groupe, where she served as CEO of Publicis Collective U.S. and helmed the holding company’s dedicated Verizon unit.
WPP Media CEO Brian Lesser announced the appointment in a memo sent to staff this morning and obtained by ADWEEK.
Steele “will assume leadership of a group of U.S. teams to continue to drive high-performance growth for those clients,” Lesser wrote.
A spokesperson for WPP Media confirmed the appointment to ADWEEK.
Steele will take the post officially on January 16, according to the memo, and will work closely with the company’s other U.S. chief client officer Nancy Hall, though the two will oversee different client portfolios, the company said. She will report directly to Lesser.
Steele has worked in the ad industry for more than two decades. Prior to her four-year tenure at Publicis, she was U.S. CEO of Dentsu’s Carat, elevated to that role after implementing an audience-driven planning and activation strategy and overseeing client accounts for leading brands like General Motors, Microsoft, and Procter & Gamble.
Earlier in her career, Steele helped grow Ansible, a specialized mobile marketing agency within Interpublic Group (IPG), to a mid-sized global network. (Ansible was later folded into Reprise, which was subsequently absorbed into IPG Mediabrands’ Kinesso—the brand names of which are all defunct following Omnicom’s $13.5 billion takeover of IPG).
In his memo, Lesser emphasized the experience Steele will bring to the company, saying: “Angela has spent her career leading organizations through significant change, particularly where technology, data, and platforms have redefined how brands grow and connect with consumers. She has built and led teams across agency and client environments, translating innovation into measurable outcomes in leadership roles at Publicis, Dentsu, and IPG.”
He noted that Steele’s work with major brands will also prove “instrumental in strengthening our existing client relationships and identifying opportunities for growth.”
A critical juncture
WPP Media is still searching for a North America CEO, a post that has been empty since the departure of Sharb Farjami in early October.
Steele’s appointment comes at a critical juncture for the agency, which last year suffered major client losses, including the media businesses of Coca-Cola in the U.S. and Canada, Mars, and Paramount, all to French rival Publicis.
Parent WPP also had a rocky year, with a CEO shakeup that saw Mark Read exit after seven years and sinking financials that led the company to issue two profit warnings.
More recently, CEO Cindy Rose has indicated she has a turnaround plan for the company centered on competitive pricing and AI investment.
At the end of 2025, WPP Media announced that it won new business from Jaguar Land Rover.
Correction Jan. 7 at 1:09 p.m. ET: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that WPP Media recently won business from Kenvue; however, that business went to WPP.
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