WPP boss Mark Read hits back at employee vitriol over back-to-office mandate

Mark Read, chief executive of WPP, has said that some of the comments being made about his decision to require all employees to work in the office at least four days a week do not reflect the views of many staff.

Speaking to Campaign sister title PRWeek, Read said the policy was in line with client demands and would be good for employee careers in the longer run.

Since Read’s email announcing the new office mandate last week, several employees from the advertising and PR giant have reacted strongly to the policy. 

Speaking to PRWeek on condition of anonymity, one mid-level WPP employee said: “It went down like a cup of cold sick, quite honestly. Everyone just stopped working in stunned silence – then the fury and panic came.

“If one of our clients told us they were going to do this, the most junior consultant would talk them out of it. I guarantee this will be used as a ‘worst practice’ crisis/internal comms case study for years to come. Mark Read should not be head of a communications company, frankly.”

Another WPP employee said: “You’ve got 10,000 signatures on a petition from a company that hires 100,000… you don’t need me to tell you it’s not gone down well.

“If you have changed your whole life (eg moved out of the city) because you were told ‘flexible working is the future’, you have every right to be furious. If you just like working from home more than the office, unlucky, your employer has decided that this isn’t the way their business works.”

And another described the announcement as “the least motivational start to the year teams could get”.

The added: “They feel trust is out the window and presenteeism is back in. People like being together – that’s not a problem – but the overriding of all other policies, some very well thought through and working (including driving the results listed in the email) are thrown out for an ill-conceived mandate."

In a phone call to PRWeek on Wednesday evening, Read insisted such views were not representative of WPP’s employee base, many of whom were frustrated with colleagues who weren’t coming in as much as them.

Read said: “Listen, I know for some people this is going to be a change but we are going to introduce this new policy co-operatively. It doesn’t come in until April and we’ll use that time to talk to our people about how to implement it carefully and pragmatically.

“We appreciate that many people have responsibilities such as dropping their kids at school or caring for an elderly relative, and we’re going to continue much of the flexibility we’ve experienced over the last few years. That said, with many of our clients in the office three, four and increasingly five days a week, we think this is the right move for the long-term success of the company and people’s careers.”

Other WPP staff have, again anonymously, expressed their support for the Read’s policy.

One managing director-level employee said: “We have a great culture in the office and work really well when we’re together as a team. Our focus is about giving the best service to clients and winning new business. When the team is working close together we’re better at those things.”

Another director-level staffer said: “At this stage of my career I find working from home can mean you miss out on important discussions that usually lead to new idea generation.”

In the memo sent to all WPP staff last week, Read said employees would be required to work in the office at least four days a week. The updated global guidelines will apply across WPP’s operations, including its PR agencies such as Burson, making the holding company one of the first to implement a four-day office attendance policy since the Covid-19 lockdowns. 

The memo also explained that employees would be required to work from the office on at least two Fridays per month, with the flexibility to choose which other days they work remotely.

Since the announcement, a petition opposing the policy launched by “Concerned WPP Employees” has amassed almost 10,000 signatures in four days. It is unclear how many of the signatures are from WPP staff members.

WPP’s response

In his memo to staff, Read had defended the decision, writing: “I believe that we do our best work when we are together in person. It’s easier to learn from each other, it’s a better way to mentor colleagues starting out in the industry, and it helps us win pitches as a truly integrated team.

“The data from across WPP agencies shows that higher levels of office attendance are associated with stronger employee engagement, improved client survey scores and better financial performance. More of our clients are moving in this direction and expecting it of the teams who work with them. 

“This doesn’t mean we’re going back to old ways of doing things. During the pandemic we all learned the value of greater flexibility in our working lives and of being trusted to balance work and personal commitments.”