Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide

Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide Case Analysis Name Institution Charlotte Beers at Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide Case Analysis What were the biggest challenges – internally and externally – Beers faced when she took charge at Ogilvy & Mather? Internally Lack of support and belief from her top executives. One executive is quoted saying that “she was from a smaller agency in Chicago and had not managed multiple offices. O&M is a worldwide company, and she had never worked outside the United States.” These words were said before Beers took office and started executing her duties. She was not seen as a suitable replacement for Philips who had worked at the company for 27 years. She was an outsider. O&M had never in its years of operation been under someone who came from outside. The agency always had people from within the company take over. However, here was someone who had gone against the grain and been appointed as the CEO from outside. The organization’s culture was thus a major impediment to Beer’s when she took charge at O&M. Lack of inspiration and motivation from the employees. Ibarra and Sackley (2011) write that “Ogilvy had gotten so far from its base, that talented people lacked the confidence to speak up.” This was a testament to the record lows in terms of confidence the company’s employees had fallen. Beers was thus faced with the problem of making sure that she revitalizes the company’s image and motivation levels. O&M’s organizational structure was also a major problem. As Beers was trying to gather information from clients, she realized that the different departments operated as different entities. Initially, the company thrived with such a system. However, it was time for a change, but the company had maintained the same structure. Clients had become wary of this structure and could see the cracks and disunity among these groups. O’Dea, the Worldwide Client Service Director, notes that clients were seeking for a combination of “global efficiencies and local sensitivity” and did not see O&M as the right place to be because of its autonomous structures and departments. Beers was thus faced with the challenge of finding a way to steer the company in the right direction while uniting the departments under one vision. Externally She was taking over a beleaguered company. O&M had operated under some traditional principles which worked wonders for the company. However, as things changed and the company had to make adjustments, problems emerged. As noted by Ibara and Sackley (2011), “as clients demanded lower costs and greater service, Ogilvy & Mather – like many large agencies at the time – was slow to make adjustments.” This means that fast-moving clients sought the services of other agencies which guaranteed the changes they wanted. O&M’s reputation had taken a hit as it had lost major companies. These include the likes of American Express, Roy Rogers, and Campbell Soup. Losing these companies sent a message to the outside world that O&M was struggling and was not the right place. What is your assessment of the vision? Evaluate the vision in terms of the elements of an effective vision (cognitive, affective component, easy ...