WPP plans to place its three main creative advertising agencies into a single organizational structure named WPP Creative, while retaining the agencies themselves and their public identities, according to people familiar with the plans.
The reorganization will bring Ogilvy, VML and AKQA under one umbrella designed to deliver more integrated services to clients across the group’s creative offering. Each agency is expected to continue operating independently in the market, preserving its distinct brand identity even as coordination and shared capabilities increase within the new structure.
The new creative division will sit alongside WPP’s existing integrated media and production units, creating a clearer set of internal divisions focused on media, production and creative services respectively.
WPP’s board convened for a two-day meeting in New York last week to discuss the proposals. Those plans are reportedly still being finalised and could change before the company makes an official announcement, which is expected toward the end of February. The company’s board-level deliberations indicate the changes remain subject to revision prior to confirmation.
The timing of the reorganisation follows a period of market stress for WPP shares. The company’s stock was hit during last week’s market rout, a pullback that market participants linked to heightened concerns about how artificial intelligence could threaten established data and advertising businesses. In response, WPP is expected to outline new investments in AI services as part of the broader strategic package.
Executives have framed the move as an effort to simplify operations and offer clients more integrated cross-business solutions, while maintaining the client-facing identities and independence of the individual creative agencies. Details on the specific governance, reporting lines, or investment amounts for AI services have not been disclosed and will likely be part of the final announcement.