The Rise of the Superagency; Ford confides in WPP. PepsiCo's choice is Omnicom. How the holding company morphed into the new agency.

Advertising Age, January, 2002 by Wentz, Laurel

Each month, WPP Group Chief Executive Martin Sorrell checks in with top executives at Ford Motor Co., WPP's biggest client. In wide-ranging conversations they discuss the quality of creative work, talent retention, research and strategy.

``Martin pretty much knows our business in total,'' says Jan Klug, Ford VP-global marketing. Mr. Sorrell gives Ford a direct relationship with the parent of its agencies. He and his top rivals are changing the business of advertising by redefining the role of the holding company. Call it the ``superagency.''

WPP isn't alone. PepsiCo last year hired not an agency, but Omnicom. Coca-Cola Co. has a strategic relationship with Interpublic. It's an emerging trend-one superagency CEOs are reluctant to talk about.

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