At the end of 2004, John McConnell, the unofficial leader of the pentagram is preparing for his retirement in the spring of 2005. The pentagram, a multi-disciplinary design firm with 19 partners in five offices (London, Berlin, New York, San Francisco and Austin), considered the "Rolls Royce of Design" by his peers. The company's growth is based on the addition of well-known designers, who in turn bring the business under the name of the pentagram. The group is facing enormous competitive pressure from integrated advertising conglomerates such as WPP, Omnicom and Interpublic. Twenty-five percent of the Pentagram partners believe that the company should first recruit MBA consultant type of partner for dialogue with major customers in more corporate settings. The idea of adding a non-practitioner is in direct conflict with the original spirit of the company. What changes, if any, should take into account the pentagram to remain competitive? "Hide
by M. Julia Prats, Jordan Mitchell Source: IESE 22 pages. Publication Date: September 26, 2005. Prod. #: IES200-PDF-ENG
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