Advertisers face near-revolt

Jun 2 2009 By nebusiness

ADVERTISING and marketing giant WPP today faced a near-revolt from shareholders over its multi-million pound bonus plans for top bosses as it also reported "below budget" revenues.

Around a quarter of shareholder votes at its annual general meeting (AGM) were either against the pay plans or were abstained in a show of investor protest at WPP’s long-term bonus awards.

WPP also saw shares slip 4% after it said like-for-like revenues fell by 6.7% in the first four months of the year.

The group has axed nearly 4,300 jobs - or 3.7% of its global workforce - since January as it seeks to slash costs in the face of lower revenues.

And WPP signalled more jobs could go as it said the "short-term focus will continue to be on balancing staff costs and headcount against the fall in revenue".

But it will now plough on with plans to award bonuses - including a potential £58m share reward for boss Sir Martin Sorrell - to senior managers after gaining a narrow vote in support of the scheme.

Top bosses who invest in the company’s shares could be awarded up to five times as many free shares, as long as the firm hits certain key performance targets, including outperforming its rivals.