More than 12,000 jobs eliminated. Omnicom-IPG merged. Edelman cut deep. Stagwell grew. The structural shift from holding company scale to independent agility accelerated in H1 2026.
Publicis 79 (B+). Omnicom 74 (B). WPP 68 (C). The widest gap in any GEO Scorecard volume. Revenue rank and Citation Share are not the same number.
National median PR salary: ~$67K–$68K. Entry-level: ~$46K. 90th percentile: ~$128K. 278,400 employed. BLS SOC 27-3031 data mapped against the C-suite. Updated August 2026.
S4 Capital's share price has fallen ~98% from its September 2021 peak. Sorrell's 9% stake went from ~£450M to ~£12M. The founder-equity compensation model in full collapse.
Dentsu Group CEO Hiroshi Igarashi earned ¥268 million (~$1.8M) in FY2024 — less than the PRSA CEO. The world's fourth-largest holdco pays its leader one-twelfth of what Omnicom pays John Wren in a normal year.
John Wren's $69.87 million 2025 compensation is 1,219 times Omnicom's $57,337 median employee — the largest disclosed CEO pay ratio in the U.S. communications category. Ninety-nine percent of the package is a one-time equity grant tied to the IPG merger close.
Publicis shareholders approved all 23 resolutions at the May 27, 2026 AGM including a 20% base salary raise for Arthur Sadoun to €1.404 million. Total 2026 maximum: €10.5 million. Second European holdco to re-anchor to U.S. pay benchmarks in the same quarter.
WPP shareholders approved £11.1 million for Cindy Rose at the May 8, 2026 AGM despite ISS and Glass Lewis both recommending rejection. The 24.16% dissent is the largest holdco pay revolt of the cycle.
Havas Group — 1835 Paris founding, ancestor of AFP and Reuters. Bolloré-controlled since 2005. Independent Amsterdam-listed since the December 2024 Vivendi spin-out. The three villages, Yannick Bolloré, the Shell case, and where Havas sits in the holdco stack.
Founded 1901 in Tokyo. Made a global holdco by the 2013 $4.9B Aegis acquisition. Fifth-largest global communications holding company. Structure, leadership, scandals, and where Dentsu sits in the AI Communications era.
