WMGO story: clearing up `the facts’

I returned from holiday to read the various articles (MW March 31 and April 7) about my demise and feel I have to correct some statements and implications about me which are, frankly, downright in accurate.

1) I am, as of today, chief executive of the WMGO group plc. I have not stepped down, resigned, been fired, been stood down or any other euphemism.

2) I do not deny I am thinking about my future. Over the past seven years I have taken the WMGO group from four men, a secretary and no business to 220 staff and over 70 clients. The past nine months have been a living hell and, frankly, life’s too short to lose this much sleep.

3) There was no properly convened board meeting at the agency.

4) I don’t have an employment contract with the agency, so I cannot have been “sacked” by them.

5) An MBO is planned for the agency. Although it was originally my idea, I want no part of it and I have asked for my name to come “off the door”.

6) On July 8 1994 we merged the old WMGO group Ltd with MMI, which was already on the stock market. Its share price had already fallen from 36.5p to 27.5p. Our old company WMGO Ltd is on an earn out that we confidently expect to beat.

Any link between my role as chief executive and a poor share price or profit performance is more than a little unfair, particularly given that I joined mid-way through a financial year.

7) In fact, I have prepared a complete plan for the re-engineering of the WMGO group plc, a plan which has been adopted by the board and is being implemented in total. It should see a complete turnaround in the group’s fortunes.

8) I have always had an excellent relationship with my clients, from the RAC to Norwich Union Healthcare, to Mercury One2One and Savacentre. It’s because I believe we are in business because of clients and for no other reason. I believe I have served my clients well and I know by and large they agree.

Chris Woollams

Chief executive

WMGO group

London W1