Lowe, staff likely to bury the hatchet

Lowe India might smoke the peace pipe with its disgruntled employees as holding company InterPublic Group (IPG) intervenes to soothe the ruffled feathers of its creative team. The row might also trigger the end of the role of a full-time consultant in the advertising business.

Agencies might be averse to appointing consultants in the system, said an agency executive working for the WPP network. "A lot of agencies are moving away from this system. The agencies prefer to have employees," he added.

Sources said IPG would also look at roping in a consultant as an employee in its operations on a par with its worldwide structure. However, Lowe India Chairman Prem Mehta denied knowledge of any such move. Stephen Gatfield, CEO, Lowe & Partners Worldwide, said, "It is the intention of Lowe Worldwide and IPG to embrace all the agency talent fully in the future, working with the management and the trust."

However, when asked specifically if Lowe Worldwide would look at giving a special bonus to the creative team in India to retain them, Gatfield said, "Talent is the key to our success and our future. As in any business, we will do what is necessary to attract and maintain talent."

Top members of Lowe India's creative team are reportedly miffed with the company management in India as some of them, who were consultants to the agency, did not receive cheques doled out by Lintas India Trust to its employees late last week.

About 12 members of Lowe India's creative team, including the agency's national creative director and the design head, are not a part of the employee rolls as they work in Lowe as consultants. Hence they did not receive the proceeds of the 51 per cent stake sale of Lintas India to IPG.

The stake was owned by the agency's employee trust and hence the proceeds of the sale were distributed only among the employees.

Mehta said the company had 800 employees and a 150-member strong creative team. However, he said only 12 members of the team were consultants and the others had benefitted from the IPG deal.

Sources added that discontent simmered as consultants felt that rewards needed to be matched with the contribution of an individual to the agency's success. "Even as consultants are not eligible for a share of the trust funds, the entire issue has not been managed well," said a Lowe executive.