Article first published in AdForum on February 27, 2025. Read the original article here. 

Amid growing consolidation in the agency brand landscape and shifts in how clients shape their partnerships with agencies, independents are more attractive than ever before. But can they scale for client needs?

Worldwide Partners Inc is a global network of over 90 indie agencies with a united mission. Led by President & CEO John Harris, the network has finessed the art of coming together as a group and in parallel celebrates individual agency identity, to offer the full 360: The strength of global collaboration, local expertise, specialization.

We interviewed John to learn more about the network and how they guide clients to success.

Congratulations on Worldwide Partners’ growth since its inception back in the 1930s! It’s no mean feat to go the distance over such a long period. To what do you owe this longevity?

Worldwide Partners’ success and longevity can be directly attributed to the quality and character of our agencies, their shared spirit of collaboration, and their ability to consistently evolve to meet the needs of their clients. These have been the fundamental principles driving the network since its inception in 1938, and they continue to guide us in our mission of enabling growth for the brands that we serve and for the independent agencies who represent that very heart of our network.

Worldwide Partners Global Summit, Mexico 

Worldwide Partners agencies believe that membership is a verb. It’s not simply a passive gesture of endorsement, but rather a dynamic action of empowerment. WPI agencies are not just members of Worldwide Partners, they are powered by Worldwide Partners. “Powered by” is a mindset, a skill set, and a tool set; but most importantly it’s an operating model that harnesses the talent, expertise and diversified capabilities within the network to solve the precise business challenges of today’s brand marketers. 

Kronenburg 1664 “The Fresh / French Way” | WPI Agency Rosbeef!

You have described yourselves as the ‘reverse holding company’ – what do you mean by that?

Rather than the network acquiring agencies and dictating the financial and operational terms of engagement, the agencies own the network, set the terms of engagement, and remain 100% independent. Worldwide Partners agencies work together because they choose to, not because they have to. They recognize that independence is a team sport, and that collaboration fuels ambition. It’s this shared agenda and operational freedom that makes WPI the most collaborative agency network in the world. 

Maybelline "Feels So Light" | WPI Agency Brancher.X (Vietnam)

What do you bring to the table for clients, how do you position?

Worldwide Partners enables growth for brands through access, simplicity and accountability.

Per research from the World Federation of Advertisers, almost every CMO surveyed stressed the importance of access to the best talent (97%) and integration (92%). 8 of 10 CMOs wanted an agile agency partner model with collaboration at its core. Almost half were looking for greater flexibility in the way they are serviced by agencies.

With more than 90 agencies in 50 countries, every WPI agency can provide their clients with on-demand access to world-class talent, capabilities and creativity. Our bespoke service model makes everything easy. And because our agencies own the network, they always put the client’s business first. Our partners aren’t competing P&Ls within a corporate structure; they are free and hungry to collaborate, delivering seamless integration and maximum impact for our clients. 

LEGO Company "Jaws In A Jiffy" | WPI Agency Advance

Can you give us a top line overview of how you function and collaborate as a network?

Every network collaboration is built to support our clients in the way they want to work.

The network’s role is to assist in aligning “talent to task” and facilitating collaboration between our agencies. There is typically a lead agency which will work with the client to define the scope of work and own the client contract. The lead agency will subcontract with other WPI agencies as needed to support the scope of work, giving the client exactly what they need when and where they need it. All reporting and billing is centralized with one agency and delivered to the client in a consistent manner. It’s really that simple.

Working with Brand USA

For Brand USA, the organization responsible for promoting U.S. tourism on an international level, WPI agencies serve as both the global media and global creative Agencies of Record.

R&R Partners is the lead global media agency, supported by international hubs led by Ardmore (EMEA), Propeg (LATAM) and Helios Worldwide (APAC). Each agency leading a regional hub accesses in-country agency partners for local activation. All agencies are engaged in the planning process to ensure consistency across markets, and all agencies utilize the same data and reporting platform to deliver consistency for the client.

Spark is the lead global creative agency for Brand USA and mirrors the same operating model implemented by the global media team. This not only creates consistency for the client, but ensures integration of media and creative.

Brand USA | WPI Agency SPARK

What do you look for in an agency that would like to become part of WPI?

The specific criteria for evaluating new agencies includes quality of their work, client results, the leadership team, geographic reach, areas of expertise, and most importantly, a spirit of collaboration.

That said, we currently have more than 90 agencies in 50 countries comprising a powerful, expansive and diverse global service platform. We do not push competition between our agencies, and we do not subscribe to the idea of “the more horses in the race the better”. Our top priority is to identify prospective agencies that are additive versus redundant to our current offerings, and, who have compelling client value propositions. To put this into perspective, we turned away 80 agencies in 2024 who wanted to join the network but did not meet that criteria or our standards.

HBO "House of Dragon Season 2" | WPI Agency Giant Spoon

Turning to the US specifically, you have 40 US agencies in the WPI network. How do you partner a brand with the right agency?

The size of our US footprint is reflective of the fact that the US is the largest media market in the world. More than the number of agencies, the diversification of our service offerings across the US - and across the network as a whole - is reflective of how brand marketers are evaluating agency partners based on the specific expertise they are looking to engage.

We know our agency partners intimately. We know their work, experience, capabilities, culture and staff. Our agencies aren’t a directory on our website, they are partners and friends. It’s this deep knowledge and connection that allows us to build the right agency model for a client based on the business problem they are looking to solve.

UKG "Nothing Feels as Good as a Great Place to Work" | WPI Agency Zambezi

Drawing everything together, what are your aspirations for WPI’s growth, where do you go from here?

Our growth strategies are not based upon reaching a specific size or imposed quota, but rather ensuring we have the right agencies in the right markets with the right capabilities and the right expertise to address our clients’ precise business challenges. We will continue to expand our footprint, add new capabilities, and diversify our vertical expertise, but we are not looking to grow simply for the sake of growing. Our growth will be 100% dictated by what our clients may need.

Our mission is clear and unchanged - enable our agencies to enable growth for their clients, powered by the most collaborative agency network in the world.

Gay Group of Bahia "Dismissal" | WPI Agency Propeg