What the heck's going on, and what is in the $9 billion magic potion Omnicom seems to have acquired? After all, they’ve managed to take $4 billion out of Publicis and $5 billion out of WPP, neither of whom can be said to be an easy touch. So they must be doing something right.
First off, of course I have no idea. I wasn’t in any of those pitches and even though three out of the four are old clients of mine the times and their priorities have changed beyond all recognition.
But not knowing never stopped any blogger from having an opinion.
There are one or two interesting patterns.
One is a focus on delivering to a need, whatever the structure required to do that. McDonald’s and AT&T have brought creative and media together within the same holding company. The P&G solution was to be found in the formation of a new media agency.
It’s as if the holding company is setting aside the old structures and creating new teams from scratch from within their organization. Omnicom’s opcos seem to have evolved a happy knack of being able to work together across disciplines, whatever the internal pressures that may (or may not) be created.
WPP has for many years offered cross-disciplinary (and cross company) teams but at the same time Sir Martin Sorrell has been famous for his “fight nicely” mantra, with the implication that each unit has to scrap with each other to meet financial goals.
Publicis simply seems less practiced at this agile and flexible way of working.
Omnicom has always seemed, admittedly from afar, to be less prescriptive than its rivals in how it runs its operating units. In an era when the options are so numerous it seems sensible to retain the flexibility to bend and stretch into whichever shape is the most appropriate.
Whether I’m right or wrong, Omnicom seems to have found a winning formula. Will others learn from their losses?
Yes, of course they will.
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