Exclusive: WPP ad agencies Ogilvy and Grey have not yet introduced four-day office policy April 4, 2025 Two of WPP’s flagship advertising agencies have not been able to introduce their holding company’s contested return-to-office mandate because they do not have enough desks to accommodate the influx of staff. City AM has learned that Ogilvy and Grey’s London offices have not yet implemented WPP’s demand for staff to work four days a week [...]
IWG: Co-working platform announces share buyback, higher dividend March 4, 2025 Hybrid workspace provider IWG has announced a share buyback programme and an increase in its dividend after a jump in earnings. The company will buy back $50m (£39.4m) worth of shares and pay out a dividend of 0.90 pence per share for a total 2024 dividend of 1.33 pence per share, up from one pence per [...]
‘Once you legislate, people will rebel’: Why a vibes-based WFH policy is working for Vitality February 13, 2025 The debate-stirring issue of working from home (WFH) has never been far from the headlines so far in 2025. The likes of FTSE 100 giant WPP, Lord Alan Sugar and London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan have all made waves with where they stand on the topic. Now Neville Koopowitz, the chief executive of health and [...]
Barclays the latest to harden line on office attendance rules January 30, 2025 Barclays has become the latest blue chip firm to tighten its office attendance policy, asking staff to attend the office a minimum of three days a week. The British-headquartered lender unveiled a more stringent approach to hybrid working in a memo to staff earlier this week, which cut the minimum number of days staff can [...]
Waterstones: Return to the office helps profit almost quadruple January 21, 2025 The return of employees to offices in major UK city centres helped profit almost quadruple at Waterstones during its latest financial year. The bookseller cited the trend of the return to work as a key factor in its pre-tax profit surging from £11.2m to £42.9m in the 12 months to 27 April, 2024. In newly-filed [...]
Back to the office helps City of London’s tallest tower to full capacity January 20, 2025 The City’s tallest tower, 22 Bishopsgate, has been fully let after four years as the financial district continues to prove its ability to command premiums for best-in-class sustainable spaces. There’s little sign of the gloom pervading other areas of the commercial office sector in the City, with rents at 22 Bishopsgate the highest ever achieved [...]
The Debate: Will RTO mandates help or harm businesses? January 16, 2025 RTO mandates are riling up employees, but are businesses right to clamp down on working from home? Our writers hash it out in The Debate.
Can your employer force you back to the office? January 15, 2025 Headlines have been blowing up this week with several big businesses forcing its workforce back into the office. A topic that often results in a heated debate
Petition against WPP four-day office policy hits 10,000 signatures January 13, 2025 A petition demanding that WPP revokes its new four-day office policy has attracted over 10,000 signatures in just four days, as backlash from staff grows against the ad giant’s decision to mandate a higher level of attendance at its offices worldwide. The Change.org petition, which claims to have been set up by a group of [...]
WPP staff made to work from the office four days a week January 7, 2025 Staff at FTSE 100 ad giant WPP will be made to come into the office four days a week under a new policy announced to staff just weeks before it is set to lose its crown as the world’s largest advertising firm to Publicis. Boss Mark Read confirmed the policy change at the London-listed media [...]