Falling blocks of mergers: Where do clients stand?

Lately, the ad world has felt a bit like a giant game of Jenga, blocks pulled out from one end, stacked onto another, everyone waiting to see what wobbles next. Omnicom’s $13.5 billion acquisition of IPG is one of those moves that reshapes the whole tower.

The three global creative networks, BBDO, McCann and TBWA, now serve as the main pillars, while the names DDB, FCB and MullenLowe have been removed and absorbed into the network’s larger stack.

And the restructuring runs much deeper. Omnicom has announced plans to cut more than 4,000 jobs worldwide, largely across back-office and non-billable teams, though some leadership roles will also disappear. Once the reorganisation settles, roughly 85% of the remaining workforce will be client-facing, with just 15% in support functions. The company expects the integration to deliver over USD 750 million in annual cost savings, a clear signal of how holding groups are tightening operations as AI-driven workflows and self-serve advertising platforms intensify competition.

Leadership reshuffles, client team reassignments, and centralised processes are all part of the effort to build a more efficient, scalable tower, but in towers like these, one misstep can reverberate all the way to the top.

But this is not the first time advertisers have seen such sweeping consolidation. A few months earlier, GroupM, long the media investment arm of WPP, underwent a radical transformation, rebranding itself as WPP Media and merging legacy media agencies such as Mindshare, MediaCom, Wavemaker and EssenceMediacom into one unified entity. 

WPP cut thousands of jobs globally. By mid-2025, its workforce had shrunk from 111,000 to 104,000, a drop of around 7,000 roles. The restructuring, part of a broader re-organisation under the banner of WPP Media, was meant to streamline operations and reinvest in data, AI and global capabilities. But that reordering came with a heavy cost. 

As employees exited, so did long-term clients.

Decades-old relationships unravelled with astonishing speed. Mars, a roughly USD 1.7 billion global media business, moved its account to Publicis. Coca-Cola moved its $700 million North America media business to Publicis. Paramount, after nearly twenty years with GroupM, followed the same path. One after another, these clients walked away from WPP. WPP’s share price plunged to a five-year low. Publicis soon overtook WPP to become the world’s top ad holding group.

The cracks only intensified. In June, CEO Mark Read, who had spent seven years trying to steer the company through consolidation and digital disruption, but couldn’t prevent the downfall, announced his departure.

Eventually, WPP brought in Cindy Rose, a leader from outside the advertising ecosystem, to stabilise the organisation. So far, she has struggled to stop the slide.

By October, the stock had fallen as much as 18%, hitting levels last seen in the late nineties, when Martin Sorrell was still building WPP into the world’s biggest ad group. At her first quarterly investor meeting, Rose said “I acknowledge our recent performance is unacceptable.”

If history is any proof, clients inside Omnicom’s new tower may now face a period of uncertainty. Scale, data and AI may be the new stabilising blocks, but talent shifts, cultural dilution and potential service disruptions usually follow such changes. This means the structure could wobble before it settles.

To gauge how large-scale acquisitions and restructures like this look from the client’s chair, we spoke to senior marketing leaders about their reactions, concerns and what such moves tell them about the state of the industry. 

What clients dread losing most

When a legacy agency brand disappears in a consolidation, the external story is usually about efficiency, integration, and scale. But on the client side, the emotional pulse is personal. Brands don’t work with logos; they work with people, chemistry and instinctive shorthand built over years. And when an acquisition forces that ecosystem to rearrange itself overnight, marketers feel the tremor from the inside out.

There is usually a certain comfort level with the client servicing team and the culture which might change due to re-structuring of the leadership. There is a risk of category understanding with an absolutely new team.

Krishnarao Buddha, Former Sr. Category Head - Marketing, Parle Products, said, “There is usually a certain comfort level with the client servicing team and the culture which might change due to re-structuring of the leadership. There is a risk of category understanding with an absolutely new team.”

At its core, fear isn’t just about processes or structure, it’s about the people who make the work happen.

Similarly, Manimala Hazarika, Fractional CMO, focuses on emotional and cultural cohesion. She said, “For most clients, the real fear isn’t the name change, it’s losing the people and the culture that built their brand.”

She pointed out that agencies often work so closely with brand leadership that they almost become an extension of the company itself, building and shaping the company and brand ethos.

“When a big consolidation like this takes place, the worry is simple: Will my core team stay? Will my brand still matter in a giant global system with many other global brands? Because ultimately, it’s the team and the chemistry that drive great work and losing that could mean years of effort wiped out and having to rebuild from scratch.”

For her, the dread is existential. Afterall, losing cultural alignment means losing the very engine that drives great work and consistency.

Clients don’t fear scale, they fear displacement. They fear the loss of the people who intuitively understand their category, the dilution of creative identity, and the ambiguity that follows reassignments and restructures.

And as Omnicom absorbs IPG and thousands of roles shift or disappear, this fear becomes even sharper. If WPP’s consolidation taught the industry anything, it’s this: when a tower shakes, the first thing clients look for is the team holding their brick in place.

While fear shapes how clients react, their expectations guide how they navigate the new changes.

What matters most to clients

Consolidations and acquisitions often promise scale, AI, data, and global integration. But for clients, these benefits matter only if they don’t come at the cost of speed and agility. In fast-moving markets, the ability to turn insights into action quickly is often more important than sheer scale or technological muscle.

Hazarika explained, “Scale and data are not negotiable in today’s world, especially in a world where AI is changing how we plan, create and measure. Access to better data and stronger tech absolutely gives brands an advantage. But if I’m forced to choose, I’d still say speed matters more than scale.”

She elaborated that markets move so fast that delays caused by systemic bottlenecks can make brands late to conversations that have already shifted. The real edge, she noted, lies in how quickly partners can turn insights into action, whether it’s rolling out new creatives, running rapid test-and-learn experiments, or pivoting when something isn’t working. 

“I definitely want the muscle of a big network—AI, data, tech—but with a small, empowered team around my brand that can move in days, not months. That balance is everything.”

-Manimala Hazarika

Buddha echoed this sentiment, emphasising operational urgency: “Though both scale and speed are critical, I would choose speed as definitely a bit more important. Quick turnarounds and timely deliveries are of prime importance. Scale would matter during key launches, but large integrations can slow approvals and dilute autonomy in the near term. Marketers should demand SLAs and pilot sprints that prove time-to-value before broad rollouts.”

For clients, the promise of technology and global reach is meaningful only if it is paired with empowered teams that can move quickly, make decisions autonomously, and maintain momentum without waiting for layers of approvals. Speed, agility, and trust in the team become the true measures of value in a consolidated network.

Even when clients know what matters most, they remain vigilant for subtle signals that a consolidation could disrupt the partnership.

Early warning signs and red flags

Even before consolidation headlines hit the press, cracks often appear at the day-to-day level, visible only to clients who interact with the agency every day. These early signs help marketers judge whether a reorganisation will support their brand or create new problems.

Buddha highlighted that the early signs of trouble are operational and tangible. “Signs like staff churn on the account, unexplained role freezes, or senior access getting deferred are key indicators to watch out for during a massive reorganisation,” he said. 

He added that other warning flags include slower approvals, longer alignment steps across global teams, and tool migrations executed without parallel runs. These, he noted, are the cracks clients feel before they ever see them.

Hazarika focused on how systemic changes can dilute the personal attention clients have come to expect. She explains that when the core team keeps changing, it signals a loss of relationship capital that has been built over years. Slower response times, generic templated presentations, and a lack of customised category insights are all red flags that can undermine confidence. 

“If senior leaders stop showing up or stop engaging, it usually signals that the account is no longer a priority in the new structure,” she added.

For clients, it’s not just about efficiency; it’s about continuity, reliability, and the subtle understanding of their brand that only a stable, engaged team can provide.

By keeping a close eye on these signs, marketers can separate temporary integration bumps from more structural issues that might prompt them to reassess agency relationships. In times of large-scale consolidation, awareness becomes as vital as the decisions themselves.

And when larger networks falter or slow down under the weight of integration, clients might need someone to fill the gaps they can’t afford to ignore.

Big shake-ups, small winners

When large networks undergo sweeping restructures, independent agencies often emerge as a safe harbour for brands seeking stability and focus. 

Buddha noted that independent agencies bring consistency in messaging and maintain the cultural and operational cohesion that clients fear losing during massive network shake-ups. “Independent agencies definitely benefit in consolidation cycles by offering senior attention, clearer identity, and faster decisions while holding companies digest change,” he said. 

For brands navigating uncertainty, this advantage can be decisive. While large networks promise scale, data, and technology, independent agencies offer agility and reliability, the very elements clients cling to when the bigger towers shake.

To sail the boat, save the boat first

In times of large-scale mergers and acquisitions, clients aren’t looking for perfection, they are looking for honesty, continuity, and proof that the changes will actually benefit their brand. The onus is on agencies to demonstrate that the reorganisation strengthens client partnerships rather than slows them down.

Hazarika said, “First, over-communicate with humility. Tell clients exactly what is changing, what is not, and by when. Silence creates more anxiety than bad news.” She emphasises that protecting a ‘small team energy’ around big clients is critical. “No matter how large the network, clients need a tight, cross-functional squad that knows their business deeply and can move fast.”

She added that clients also need to see proof of the merger’s benefits within 6–12 months. It’s not enough to talk about AI, data, or scale, clients must feel the upgrade in faster audience insights, better measurement, and sharper creative outputs. Transparency on conflicts, senior leadership visibility, and prioritisation is equally crucial in calming anxieties, especially when many brands now sit under one global roof.

“Ultimately, trust is retained when clients can see that the reorganisation makes their brand stronger, not slower,” she concluded.

How agencies manage communication, continuity, and team stability during these transitions determines whether that trust holds. In the end, it’s not numbers, scale, or technology that matter. It’s the people, the culture, and the clients’ confidence in those holding the bricks that decide whether the game ends in collapse or resilience.