Essayer OR - Gratuit
WPP advertises for new CEO amid AI disruption
The Observer
|June 15, 2025
Mark Read's exit from the company comes at a pivotal moment when agencies' creativity faces the threat of artificial intelligence, writes Barney Macintyre
When the Cannes Lions international festival of creativity kicks off tomorrow there will be a conspicuous absence among the annual jamboree of advertisers and marketeers.
Mark Read, chief executive of WPP, announced he was stepping down last Monday, ending a 30-year career at the UK’s largest advertising group.
The industry is at a crossroads, torn between the power of AI and the value of human creativity. Is advertising a tech business or a people business? The choice of Read’s successor will say much about how WPP sees the future of marketing.
Read was no doubt feeling the pressure, but his departure appears to be a personal choice. He had run the company for seven years, having taken over after the tumultuous exit of Martin Sorrell. The share prices of the world’s big advertising agencies are almost all down over the past year, but WPP’s has fallen more steeply, by nearly a third.
Cette histoire est tirée de l'édition June 15, 2025 de The Observer.
Abonnez-vous à Magzter GOLD pour accéder à des milliers d'histoires premium sélectionnées et à plus de 9 000 magazines et journaux.
Déjà abonné ? Se connecter
PLUS D'HISTOIRES DE The Observer
The Observer
Can a biopic of the Boss be anything other than blinded by his light?
Heavens above, not another biopic. I'm still in recovery from A Complete Unknown, James Mangold’s attempted unveiling of The Mysterious Soul of Bob Dylan starring Timothy Someone-or-other.
2 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Reeves is still only getting part of the Brexit message
The financial markets, and much of the media, seem obsessed by the level of public sector debt and borrowing.
3 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
The anonymous Twitter troll account set up to discredit Virginia Giuffre
The online attacks came thick and fast, all 479 of them designed to discredit the accuser of Epstein, Maxwell and Prince Andrew.
5 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Badenoch and Farage should stop playground politics of making rules they can't keep
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. That's the golden rule I remember being taught as a child in primary school. Not a bad guiding principle.
3 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Museums are in the pink while corporate sponsors remain shy
By embracing private philanthropy, the sector has received record sums, however businesses are feeling burnt by protests, write Nicole Fan and Stephen Armstrong
3 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
'Democrat saviour' or 'commie bastard': Mamdani, would-be king of New York
The 34-year-old socialist set to become the Big Apple's first Muslim mayor may be the left's greatest hope - and biggest threat. Hugh Tomlinson joins the new star of US politics on the campaign trail
8 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Use Russia's money
Europe has missed its chance to hit Putin's finances
2 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Struggling 'clean food' brands dig in for long haul
Autumn, season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, wrote Keats. Not if you're in the plant-based food industry. Sales at major brands, including Oatly and Beyond Meat, are stalling.
2 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Reeves mission: to build a European Silicon Valley centred on 'golden triangle'
Brexit is costing the UK 80bn a year in lost taxes, hitting output by up to 8% and investment by more than twice as much. The chancellor has her work cut out
5 mins
October 26, 2025
The Observer
Academics sign letter of support after ‘vile’ abuse of Israeli professor
Tom Watson, Margaret Hodge, Michael Grade, Prof Andrew Roberts and hundreds of academics are among more than 1,600 signatories of an open letter condemning a “targeted harassment campaign” against an Israeli professor at a London university.
1 mins
October 26, 2025
Listen
Translate
Change font size

