The Omnicom communication group forecasts eliminating approximately 15 thousand jobs by the end of 2026, aiming to close the year with approximately 105 thousand workers, compared to the 120 thousand recorded at the end of 2025. Phil Angelastro, chief financial officer of the group, announced this goal at the "Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology" conference held on September 10, emphasizing that this is an approximate estimate. The reductions include synergies resulting from the elimination of duplicated corporate and regional management costs, outsourcing and offshoring opportunities, and ongoing divestments. The executive emphasized that the changes had "very little impact on employees who deal directly with clients."
The goal of approximately 105 thousand workers had previously been mentioned by John Wren, CEO of Omnicom, although without set deadlines. As a result of the merger with IPG at the end of last year, the group announced it would lay off more than 4 thousand employees still in 2025, mainly in administrative functions. At the end of 2024, the two groups totaled 128 thousand employees. In the first six months of 2026, Omnicom accounted for 51.1 million dollars in severance and repositioning costs.
The merger with IPG resulted in the elimination of several brands internationally, including the end of DDB, FCB and MullenLowe agencies. In Portugal, DDB ensured continuity of its activity post-merger, while the closure of FCB led Edson Athayde and Vera Barros to launch Edson Tech & Soul. Nationally, the joining of Omnicom Media Group with IPG Mediabrands gave rise to Omnicom Media Portugal, led by Bernardo Rodo as CEO, and more recently the merger of Mediahub and Hearts & Science agencies occurred, resulting in Hearts United.
Phil Angelastro also commented on the loss of PepsiCo's global media account to Publicis Groupe, admitting it is a "regrettable and disappointing" situation and that the group is conducting a detailed analysis of what went wrong. The brand remains, however, as an Omnicom client on creative, sports and public relations projects. When asked about the possibility of trying to win the rival Coca-Cola account, the CFO stated there will be "a little more flexibility" in future pursuits. Omnicom and Dentsu are expected to compete for Coca-Cola's media account in North America.
