WPP has more or less held on to its share price gains following last week’s better than expected H1 results, keeping its nose above the important £4bn valuation. If you had bought WPP shares at the year’s low – when people were even questioning the survival of the company – you’d have doubled your money.
Let’s hope some WPP inmates who’ve seen their share awards and options disappear over the past few years did benefit from the upside. Because making better use of its people is key to the British-based ad giant’s fortunes.
Stephen Armstrong writes in the Observer that the group’s big Jaguar Land Rover win was led by account man par excellence Johnny Hornby, taking time off from his role in the burgeoning Jeremy Clarkson beer business. It will be noted that Hornby’s T&P handles Toyota across Europe but if anyone can keep these balls in the air it’s Hornby.
Suck skills are just as vital as A1 proficiency and complex deals like JLR, which is supposed to be paid on an output basis, are a massive test. WPP’s flagship Coca-Cola account at WPP Open X is another potential nightmare, Publicis is chipping away at it and has already won Coke’s North America media.
WPP, though, does have formidable human resources and will be looking to some of them to land the business it badly needs. Ogilvy in the UK, now headed by the former adam&eve top team of James Murphy, David Golding and Tammy Einav is a case in point.
CEO Rose has said that year one of her Elevate28 plan for WPP is stabilising the business. That means key executives will be have been exercised as much by shrinking headcount as growing revenue. But the latter is what’s needed now.
