Dive Brief:
- WPP is consolidating its production capabilities, including those from its global production company Hogarth, into one integrated unit called WPP Production, per a news release.
- The consolidated unit will officially launch on Feb. 23 and will be led by Richard Glasson, who has been global CEO of Hogarth. WPP Production will employ more than 10,000 people in more than 40 locations across the globe.
- Creative producers companywide will operate under a single global platform to foster collaboration. WPP Production also aims to tap into “the transformative power of generative AI” through virtual and hybrid production using the network’s WPP Open operating system.
Dive Insight:
Late in 2025, WPP reported a 5.9% drop in revenue less pass-through costs fell for Q3. Company executives said at the time that greater simplification and new marketing services models are among the strategies it is pursuing as part of a turnaround strategy. Also on the list is AI.
In today’s fragmented, always-on media environment, marketers’ content needs are consistently present and regularly changing. In comments to Adweek, Glasson said WPP’s clients are hungry for different types of content tailored to different purposes and media.
WPP Production, by bringing together all of the agency’s production teams, including those at agencies such as VML and Ogilvy, expects to be able to meet clients’ content needs more efficiently and effectively. The idea is to create a “high-velocity content studio” that uses generative AI, data-driven performance metrics and real-time optimization, per the release.
The news arrives at a time of upheaval for the advertising industry, driven by the recent IPG-Omnicom merger as well as AI. Scale in media and technology look to be key driving forces for agency holding groups in this environment.
The company did not anticipate layoffs as a result of the consolidation and said the driving force behind it was not to cut costs, Adweek reported.
The new offering is part of the network’s larger strategy of leveraging its WPP Open platform to integrate and simplify services though an ecosystem of creative, media and production expertise.
The holding company said it will open a number of studio locations around the world to augment its content capture and virtual production studio in London.
