WPP job cuts: up to 1,000 more roles go by the end of 2026

WPP job cuts are going one step further. The group plans to remove up to 1,000 more roles before the end of 2026. The Financial Times reported the plan on 1 September, and trade titles in Britain, Spain and the United States picked it up in the days that followed. WPP itself has not published a number.

WPP is one of the largest advertising groups in the world. It owns media agencies, creative agencies and production units, and it buys advertising space for some of the biggest brands on the planet. At the end of June 2026 it had 97,288 people on the payroll.

About 11,000 people have left WPP since the start of 2025

Trade reports put the number of roles lost at the group at roughly 11,000 since January 2025. The new round is much smaller than that. But it lands on a company that has already shrunk hard, and it comes on top of a year of bad news, including its court fight with whistleblower Richard Foster. WPP is also giving up office space. It plans to keep two of its three buildings south of the Thames in London.

Cindy Rose is looking for 500 million pounds of yearly savings by 2028

Cindy Rose became chief executive on 1 September 2025. She came from Microsoft. Her plan, named Elevate28, is meant to deliver 500 million pounds of gross annual savings by 2028, with roughly 100 million pounds of that landing in 2026. WPP is also selling businesses it no longer sees as core, and it is rebuilding the group into four parts: WPP Media, WPP Creative, WPP Production and WPP Enterprise Solutions.

Omnicom, Dentsu and WPP have shed around 18,000 roles in 18 months

WPP is not alone. Counts of announced cuts across the big holding companies add up to about 18,000 roles over the past year and a half. Two forces push the same way. Clients now make more of their own content with generative tools, so they buy fewer hours. And the groups are merging agency brands to save money, the way Mission Group folded Krow into Bray Leino. Large accounts keep moving too, and PepsiCo sent its global media to Publicis after 25 years with Omnicom.

Marketers should ask WPP who stays on their account in 2027

For a marketer the practical question is small and dull. If a group cuts staff and merges units, who is left on your account next year? It is worth asking your agency for names, for the share of senior time you actually get, and for that to sit in the contract rather than in a slide. Fees may not move much. The people around the table often do.