Arthur Sadoun, CEO of market leading global advertising company Publicis Groupe, has had his first pay rise in four years approved by shareholders.
The board of directors had proposed to increase the CEO’s annual fixed compensation, unchanged since 2022, by 20% to €1.404 million.
At the company AGM, shareholders voted in favour of all proposals presented to them, including compensation for the CEO.
The Publicis board of directors had pointed to “the excellent quality of work” by Sadoun and the results achieved in 2025 which led to an “exceptional” overperformance compared to its competitors and to over-performance of objectives.
Sadoun’s total compensation could be as high as €10.5 million, depending on meeting short and long-term incentives.
But it won’t be as big as the possible upside of almost $US70 million to John Wren, the CEO of the biggest advertising group, Omnicom.
Publicis posted organic revenue growth of 6.4% in the March quarter, further increasing its lead against competitor global advertising companies.
“2025 was another year of very strong performance for Publicis in a difficult macroeconomic environment,” Sadoun told the AGM.
“Once again, the Groupe outperformed the industry with organic growth of +5.6%, while continuing to deliver the strongest financial ratios in the sector.
“At the beginning of 2026, the Groupe maintained its momentum with a first quarter in line with expectations, enabling us to confirm our objectives for the year.
“Despite a global environment that remains uncertain, we continue to be confident in our ability to once again outperform the industry thanks to the strength of our model.”
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