Omnicom has unveiled the most sweeping restructuring of a global advertising group in decades. The creative portfolio stands collapsed into three networks—BBDO, TBWA and McCann—while three storied brands are retired in the process: DDB, FCB and MullenLowe. On the media side of the business, six agency brands remain: OMD, PHD, Hearts & Science from OMG and Mediahub, Initiative and UM from what used to be IPG Mediabrands.
Under the new structure, led globally by John Wren, Omnicom is organised into seven divisions. FCB is absorbed into BBDO, while both DDB and MullenLowe roll into TBWA. All three absorbed legacy brands will cease to exist.
Asia leadership
Two senior Omnicom leaders hold the reins in the region.
Sean Donovan, previously Asia CEO of Omnicom Advertising Group and regional president of TBWA, is now the President of Omnicom Advertising, Asia—the newly defined creative division. All creative networks in the region, BBDO, TBWA and McCann will ladder into Donovan’s remit under the new structure. Donovan reports to former TBWA global chief Troy Ruhanen, who is now the global CEO and president of creative arm Omnicom Advertising.
On the media side, Tony Harradine, CEO of Omnicom Media Group Asia, will lead the six-network Omnicom Media vertical across the region. His remit now spans legacy Omnicom agencies OMD, PHD, Hearts & Science, as well as former IPG agencies Mediahub, Initiative and UM. It is now the world’s largest media organisation by billings.
Harradine will report to Omnicom Media global chief executive Florian Adamski.
Leadership in India, Australia and New Zealand
India
Prasoon Joshi, one of India’s most influential creative leaders, will chair Omnicom Advertising India, while Aditya Kanthy steps into the role of president and managing director and will oversee BBDO, TBWA and McCann. Both leaders will report directly to Sean Donovan in Singapore.
Group CEO of MullenLowe Lintas Group, S. Subramanyeswar, also known as ‘Subbu’ will double hat as the India chief strategy officer and chief knowledge officer for Asia.
Key appointments
- Dheeraj Sinha, formerly CEO of FCB South Asia, becomes CEO of McCann Worldgroup India, DDB's Rahul Mathew, joins him as CCO.
- Josy Paul continues as chair and CCO of BBDO India, with a refreshed leadership slate to be announced.
- Govind Pandey (TBWA India CEO) and Prateek Bhardwaj (Lowe Lintas CCO) lead the merged TBWA Lintas network.
- Chandni Shah, co-founder of FCB Kinnect and a 2023 Campaign 40 Under 40 honouree, becomes CEO of the combined Kinnect–22feet Tribal organisation. All the agency brand heads will be reporting to Kanthy.
Australia
The MullenLowe brand is sunsetting globally, but in Australia, the agency is charting its own path. The shop will fly solo under its original name, 303. The agency—majority-owned by Attivo Group and founded in 1991—first adopted the 303 MullenLowe name in 2016, before IPG sold a controlling stake to Attivo in 2021.
303 will continue to sit within Attivo Group, with no changes to the ownership structure of its sister agency, Mediahub.
The agency has offices in Perth, Sydney and Auckland, and works with clients including insurance major Budget Direct, OMO, Weet-Bix, St John WA, Lotterywest and Safework NSW, among others. Across Australia and New Zealand, it also services Sanitarium and Bayer. In 2025 alone, 303 has picked up a string of wins, including SafeWork NSW, NSW Environment Protection Authority, Netball WA, Levande Retirement Living, The Push Up Challenge and WA Museum.
At the Omnicom level, DDB Australia will fold into Clemenger BBDO – both are merged into one unified national agency under the Clemenger BBDO brand. Media and PR are unaffected for now.
Key appointments
- Leadership of BBDO Australia includes two co-CEOs. Sheryl Marjoram, the former DDB Sydney chief and DDB Melbourne’s Mike Napolitano will jointly lead creative, media, strategic and operational direction.
- Lee Leggett, the outgoing CEO of Clemenger BBDO, jumps into a new regional role of chief customer officer, Omnicom Oceania. Her remit will include strengthening client experience and integration.
New Zealand
DDB Group Aotearoa and FCB Group Aotearoa will merge to form McCann Group NZ, a unified creative and media network.
Key appointments
- Priya Patel, the CEO, DDB Group Aotearoa and FCB Group Aotearoa’s CEO, Paul Wilson will be co-CEOs of McCann Group NZ.
- In Wellington, Clems Wellington and FCB Wellington will rebrand as McCann Wellington and operate as part of McCann Group NZ. Local leadership for McCann Wellington is expected to be announced.
Nick Garrett, CEO Omnicom Oceania, “This is a defining moment for our region. By bringing together the depth, ambition and talent of our people, while simplifying the architecture, we are creating modern, future-fit agencies and capabilities that will deliver world-class creativity & media, smarter data and technology integration, and new levels of effectiveness for brands in Australia and New Zealand. I want to congratulate Priya Patel, Paul Wilson, Sheryl Marjoram, Mike Napolitano and Lee Leggett on their new roles. Their leadership will play a critical part in shaping the next era of Omnicom Oceania. These changes honour the legacies of our heritage brands while positioning us to unlock even greater opportunity, effectiveness and growth for our clients and our people.”
Transition to the new structure
Campaign has learned that the new operating structure will take effect from January 1, 2026. Leadership for most Asian markets will be announced in January as well.
In the interim, employees have been assured that additional operational details will follow in the coming weeks as agencies refine implementation frameworks.
4,000 jobs on the line
Omnicom has confirmed that 4,000 roles will be cut globally as part of the restructuring. These reductions come on top of the 3,200 jobs IPG shed earlier this year ahead of the acquisition, and the 3,000 staff Omnicom let go after announcing the deal last fall.
In total, the merger will result in roughly 10,000 eliminated positions—about 8% of the combined organisation’s 2024 headcount.
Some cuts began on October 1, but the bulk will land in December, with several waves expected as early as this week. According to the Financial Times, the financial upside of the merger is now projected to exceed the $750 million in annual cost savings originally communicated to the market, with more details expected early next year.
