James Moore: Little for us to toast as Sorrell's glass overflows

James Moore
Wednesday 01 May 2013 01:07 BST
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Outlook Is your glass half full or half empty? In the marketing, PR and advertising industries, it's not just half full. It's wow look at this marvellous, mega, super-duper drinky thing I've still got loads of. Half full? Half full? It's doubleplus half full, that's what it is. And don't get me started on how cool that dinky little cocktail brolly is!

Given that, we should be cheering Sir Martin Sorrell's decision to take one for the team and accept £150,000 pay cut. And his maximum bonus is going down too – by 20 per cent. The salary cut on its own is a mega super-duper modest gesture. That £150,000 amounts to a bit more than five times the average Briton's wage. In fact, you'd have to be among the top 1 per cent of earners to get what Sir Martin's knocked off the top. The man's magnanimity knows no bounds.

Of course, if you don't work in the marketing, PR and advertising industries, it looks a little different. That £150,000? It doesn't amount to a hill of beans given that last year he made £18m. If WPP goes well, Sir Martin, pictured, will get a bit less, but only a bit. He is still on a bloated package. Even if he gave up two or three times that, he'd hardly be going without.

Ah but, the doubleplus half full brigade will say, he'll only get the money if he does super well for shareholders. Where's your gratitude at? Here's the thing, as a major shareholder in WPP, Sir Martin already stands to benefit handsomely if the company flies. That, really, ought to be motivation enough. You don't need to be a gloomy glass half empty person to understand that. The pity is only a very few institutional investors will agree. Perhaps because they are not unfond of bloated packages themselves.

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