WPP is moving creative agency Grey under Ogilvy’s leadership as part of ongoing efforts to streamline its global operations. Grey will no longer report to AKQA Group, ending an alignment set in 2020. Despite the shift, Grey will remain a standalone brand, with CEO Laura Maness now reporting to Ogilvy’s global CEO, Devika Bulchandani.
Leaders stress this is a realignment, not a merger, and Grey will continue serving clients independently. The move follows AKQA’s search for a new CEO after Ajaz Ahmed’s exit and comes amid wider structural changes at WPP, including layoffs at GroupM.
Grey and AKQA will still collaborate on joint clients, focusing respectively on brand-building and tech/design. The change is part of WPP CEO Mark Read’s broader strategy to simplify operations and foster greater agency integration.