Some WPP clients see a risk in Mark Read’s exit, others see a reset

“I’m not so certain we should be leaving WPP now, because I’m not convinced this is the end of an era – not yet anyway,” said  a senior marketer at the WPP client, who was granted anonymity to speak freely. 

Leadership transitions at holdcos are rarely just about one executive. They’re inflection points – moments where big clients reconsider what they want, and what they’re actually getting. For this brand, Read’s exit cracked open the possibility that WPP might finally bring the urgency and accountability that had long been missing. The door to leaving remains open. But so does the idea saying, if WPP can prove it’s ready to move faster and listen more closely. 

That’s a big “if”. After all, the company is still wrestling with aging infrastructure, internal silos and a wave of competition from more responsive, tech-savvy challengers.

“We have a chance to be a priority,” continued the marketer. 

But it hasn’t felt that way for a while. And their frustration is hardly unique – it reflects a broader disillusionment among marketers who feel stuck in sprawling agency structures that promise transformation but deliver incremental change, late times and limited visibility into advertising’s impact on business.

Now, that might change. With Read on his way out and Mars pulling back, WPP has fewer assumptions to rely on. Being responsive to clients is no longer just good optics – its a survival imperative. For this advertiser, that made it the right time to pause. Not walk away, at least not yet – but to see where WPP is headed. If a review does happen, they said, it won’t be about walking out. It’ll be about stress-testing whatever vision comes next.

“If we do start a review process, I’ll want to see how WPP stands out from others because at this point what do they have to lose,” said the marketer. “Whether they see it that way is another story. 

But that view is far from universal. What one WPP client sees as an opening, others see as a warning sign. 

“There’s a CMO I’ve spoken to this week who’s concerned about WPP given the amount of issues there,” said a consultant, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “They need stability and WPP doesn’t have that.”

Because if Read’s exit did anything, it clarified just how much work remains. And how little time is left to do it. 

To be fair, the clock started ticking long before he took the helm. He inherited a holding company already weighed down by legacy systems, siloed teams and a reputation for moving too slowly. He tried to fix it – merging agencies, pushing integration, modernizing operations – but the pace rarely matched the promise. For many clients, the effort was there. The urgency wasn’t. And eventually, clients like Coca-Cola, Mars, Kimberley Clark, Starbucks and Pfizer took some – or all – of their business elsewhere. 

Time will tell whether this leadership shake-up slows or accelerates that drift. Whoever takes the reins will be expected to make an impact immediately – something marketers aren’t sure is possible.

“What we hear from our clients is a “wait and see” strategy with WPP,” said a consultant on condition of anonymity. “Many share the idea that this shake up might improve the attention to them; others wonder if new leadership will cause additional strain on agencies and most importantly the people who are working on their business.”

And that, ultimately, is the point. CMOs don’t view agency instability the way the industry does. For them, it’s less about leadership headlines and more about leverage – what it takes to get what they need, when they need it.

Read’s departure doesn’t change that. It just sharpens the focus. 

“Read brought order,” said Jeremy Goldman, director of the marketing, retail, and tech briefings at eMarketer. “The next CEO needs to bring urgency. Because right now, WPP doesn’t just need a new story—it needs a reason for clients to stick around until the next chapter.”