Publicis Groupe has just unveiled their much talked about AI platform Marcel – named after Publicis Groupe founder Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet – that will accelerate transforming the organization from a holding company to a platform, creating a “borderless, frictionless enterprise workforce, comprised of 80,000 employees worldwide, and usher in a new era of creativity and innovation,” Publicis announced in a press release.
Arthur Sadoun, Chairman & CEO, Publicis Groupe, said on the occasion: “In June last year, Publicis Groupe announced the creation of Marcel, to connect our 80,000 employees and completely reinvent the way that we work, for ourselves and our clients.
Since then, our industry has gone through unprecedented challenges, demonstrating that incremental change is not a solution. The need for reinvention is stronger than ever.
At Publicis Groupe, we haven’t waited to act. We have broken the divide between data, creativity and technology. We have broken our silos through the Power of One. Today, we are breaking the barriers between talent and opportunity with Marcel.
Marcel is a journey to shift Publicis Groupe from a holding company to a platform and give creative minds the freedom to progress and thrive in this ever-changing industry.
Marcel is the proof of our commitment to our people. At Publicis, we will put them first in our transformation, and give them the opportunity to learn, share and create more than anywhere else.
Marcel is the proof of our commitment to our clients. They will be able to leverage our incredible diversity of talent to bring to life the ideas they need to grow their business.
And, of course, Marcel is the proof of our commitment to our industry. We will be a force for good, by leading the change.”
Sadoun also commented on the speculations that were raised when the Marcel was first announced: “Tying the development of Marcel to our one-year industry event hiatus was a controversial decision, but a necessary one. It drew a line in the sand and left no doubt that we are determined to do whatever it takes to reinvent an industry that has struggled to evolve over the past 40 years. So I’m grateful to our people, our clients, and our partners at industry festivals around the world for their support and solidarity during this period, which will end in July 2018.”
Marcel is an AI powered platform that will connect and empower the 80,000 strong workforce of Publicis in multiple ways, and according to the company it was “built on the foundation of four key pillars: knowledge, connectivity, opportunity and productivity.”
Today, Marcel is tested by a team of 100 alpha users. In June the Groupe will release a beta version to 1,000 people selected as an exact Publicis Groupe representation, by agency, role and geography. This group will provide feedback that will help refine the app, and Publicis hopes to reach 90% of its employees through Marcel by 2020.
