17065: Reductions In Salaries, Reductions In Force.

 

Advertising Age reported Omnicom Chairman-CEO-Pioneer of Diversity John Wren will keep his role at the White holding company through 2028—although his annual salary will be reduced from $1 million to $1. Hey, that’s still significantly more than what many Omnicom and IPG staffers can expect to earn once they’ve been deemed redundant after Omnicom acquires IPG.

 

Omnicom Keeps John Wren In Charge Through 2028

 

By Ewan Larkin

 

If there were lingering doubts about leadership atop Omnicom Group once its acquisition of Interpublic Group of Cos. closes, they appear to have been put to rest.

 

Omnicom has amended John Wren’s term as chairman and CEO, keeping him in both roles until Dec. 31, 2028, the holding company announced in an SEC filing Wednesday. At the end of the renewal term, Wren will step down as CEO but serve as executive chairman of the board for as long as he’s a member of the board. The contract extension was finalized Monday, Omnicom’s filing stated.

 

As part of the employment agreement, Wren also agreed to reduce his annual base salary from $1 million to $1 as of June 1. He was granted a stock option to buy 4 million Omnicom shares on May 12, the filing states.

 

Omnicom’s succession planning

 

Over the next three years, Wren will work with Omnicom’s board of directors to identify and prepare a successor, the company stated. Industry insiders have speculated that Daryl Simm, president and chief operating officer at Omnicom, would be the person to replace Wren, but the agency group has yet to give any concrete indication.

 

The new contract replaces one that Wren signed in July 2021. The previous contract left Wren in place as chairman and CEO through December 2024 and automatically renewed for one-year terms unless Omnicom advised Wren, or Wren advised Omnicom, of a decision not to re-up for another one-year term. Under that old contract, if Wren stepped down as CEO, he would have continued as executive chairman of the board.

 

Wren was born on July 22, 1952, so he will be 76 years old when he steps away from the CEO role in 2028. Wren was named president in September 1995 and succeeded Bruce Crawford as CEO Jan. 1, 1997. Wren became chairman-CEO in May 2018 when Omnicom combined the posts of chairman and CEO as Crawford, 89 as of April 2018, retired as chairman, a post he had held since 1995.

 

In March, shareholders approved Omnicom’s proposed acquisition of IPG, clearing one of the deal’s final hurdles. The acquisition, which would create the world’s largest agency group, still needs regulatory approval in the U.S. and abroad.