WPP has hired Anne-Isabelle Choueiri from The Estée Lauder Companies as chief transformation officer to help reset the business as it seeks to return to growth by 2028.
Based in New York and reporting to CEO Cindy Rose, Choueiri will be tasked with designing, implementing, and embedding the operations to execute WPP’s “Elevate28″ three-year turnaround plan. The advertising network announced its turnaround strategy in February, after it posted an 8.1% year-on-year revenue decline.
In a press release, WPP said Choueiri will lead efforts to make WPP more innovative, efficient, and better connected for clients.
She will sit on the executive committee, and key parts of her role will include baking AI and tech into WPP’s day-to-day processes, as well as working with its people team to bring staff along with the changes.
Choueiri has spent the last six years working at Estée Lauder’s parent group, most recently as SVP of transformation. While there, she shaped the beauty giant’s operating model and its marketing, data, and analytics capabilities. She also led its AI strategy.
Previously, Choueiri held leadership roles at consultancies including Accenture, Bain’s Masaï, and Kearney.
WPP described the transformation chief role as newly created. However, holdco veteran Lindsay Pattison previously held the position in 2017, subsequently becoming chief client and chief people officer, before departing in 2025.
‘Bold, lasting change’
Rose said delivering on “Elevate28” would mean transforming how WPP operates and shows up for clients, adding that Choueiri was “exactly the leader [WPP] needs to drive bold, lasting change.”
She has already started transforming the business, having joined just as its share price hit a 16-year low in September 2025. Her reset plan has been designed to stabilize the business in 2026, build momentum in 2027, and return it to growth from 2028 onwards.
To achieve this, WPP is now oriented around four units: WPP Media, WPP Creative, WPP Production, and WPP Enterprise Solutions, across four key regions: North America, Latin America, EMEA, and APAC. This new setup is underpinned by its proprietary AI platform, WPP Open.
When she announced the plan two months ago, Rose said the sweeping restructure would deliver annual cost savings of $676 million (£500 million) and was informed by six months of “rigorous analysis” and conversations with WPP’s clients, which include Coca-Cola, Unilever, Nestle, and Ford. The holdco brought on McKinsey to lead a strategic review in November.
At the time, the CEO offered little detail on what specific cuts or asset sales would deliver this target.
