WPP plans to cut hundreds more jobs this year as its restructuring continues - Ad Age

WPP, the advertising giant that gave us "ring ring" and "you're not you when you're hungry," has decided that the leanest agency wins. The company plans to cut hundreds more jobs this year, with employees at its VML agency told today that their roles are affected. Because nothing says "creative industry" quite like a restructuring memo that uses "headcount reduction" as a buzzword and "synergy" as a euphemism for "you're fired."

CEO Mark Read's restructuring crusade has been running for a while now—merging agencies like VML and Y&R, selling assets, and now trimming the fat (as they call the people who actually do the work). The market likely applauded: WPP's stock? Up, probably. The humans? Down. The phrase "we are becoming more efficient" now translates to "we are paying fewer salaries." And it's not just WPP; the entire ad world is in a race to the bottom, with AI promising to replace copywriters and art directors with models that can generate 100 ad variations in seconds, often for free.

But take heart, displaced creatives! The future is bright. You will now have the glorious opportunity to train the very AI systems that replaced you, likely for a fraction of your former salary. Or you can join the booming freelance market, where you compete with a dozen other laid-off agency veterans for a $50 logo design. The advertising industry is being "restructured" into a machine that runs on algorithms and cheap labour. Cheers to the new efficiency. At least you'll have more time to enjoy your new side gig as a prompt engineer.