Advertising Age reported WPP continues to bland, er, blend its White advertising agencies, shifting Grey to report into the Ogilvy multiverse. Only in Adland does adding Grey result in White. The next color to expect is Pink—as in pink slips.
WPP moves Grey’s reporting structure under Ogilvy
By Brian Bonilla
WPP is moving Grey to report into the Ogilvy network, according to internal memos from the agencies received by Ad Age. Previously, Grey reported into AKQA.
In a memo to staff, Devika Bulchandani, Ogilvy’s global CEO, said that this won’t be a merger. “Grey will remain a standalone agency brand that will continue independently serving its clients with the same dedication and expertise they’ve come to expect,” she wrote.
In a separate memo, Grey Global CEO Laura Maness said the move comes as AKQA plans to name a new global CEO. AKQA’s previous CEO, Ajaz Ahmed, resigned last year and recently started his own agency.
“With AKQA anticipating the announcement of a new global CEO this summer, we—the Grey, AKQA, Ogilvy and WPP leadership teams—felt it was the right time to review reporting structures,” Maness wrote in her memo. “Given Grey’s transformation and resurgence as a highly regarded and awarded powerhouse creative agency, this realignment with Ogilvy is a natural fit.”
The news comes a week after it was reported that WPP’s media network GroupM will be undergoing structural changes that have resulted in layoffs. WPP didn’t immediately respond on whether there will be layoffs tied to this move or if there are plans to sell AKQA.
“Laura and I will be working closely to find opportunities to deepen collaboration and drive growth for both Grey and the broader Ogilvy network,” Bulchandani wrote in her memo. “This includes exploring strategic opportunities where Ogilvy’s complementary capabilities—from Ogilvy One and Ogilvy Consulting to Ogilvy PR’s expertise at the intersection of earned, social, and influence—can add value to Grey’s clients, and vice versa.”
Other agencies within Ogilvy’s network include David, INGO and New Commercial Arts.
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