¹is chief executive and architect of WPP, one of the world's largest communications services groups.
This piece is a lightly edited version of a speech given by Sir Martin Sorrell on the occasion of the IDM's Patrons' Lunch for 2007. It contains the reflections of one of Britain's premier business executives on what he sees as the important trends and challenges in business today.

Received 15 May 2007.

Abstract

Background

WPP companies provide clients with advertising; media investment management; information; insight and consultancy; public relations and public affairs; branding and identity; healthcare and specialist communications. Collectively, WPP employs 98,000 people in more than 2,000 offices in 106 countries.

WPP's major brands include advertising agencies JWT, Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, Y&R, Grey Worldwide and The Voluntarily United Group of Creative Agencies; global media investment management companies MindShare, Mediaedge:cia and MediaCom; market research companies Millward Brown, Research International, KMR Group and proprietary diagnostic tools for managing brands, BrandAsset® Valuator and BRANDZ; the direct, customer relationship and interactive marketing networks OgilvyOne Worldwide, Wunderman, 141 Worldwide and Grey Direct; public relations and public affairs firms Hill & Knowlton, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, Burson-Marsteller, Cohn & Wolfe and GCI; global healthcare companies CommonHealth, Sudler & Hennessey, Ogilvy Healthworld and Grey Healthcare Group; and global branding and identity firms Landor, Enterprise IG, Fitch and G2 Worldwide. WPP's specialist communications group includes firms that provide sales promotions, web communications and hi-tech marketing.

Clients include more than 330 of the Fortune Global 500, over half of the NASDAQ 100 and over 30 of the Fortune e-50.