GMR's International Market Strengths
Chief Financial and Business Operations Officer
- Feb 22, 2024
We talk a lot about global events at GMR Marketing because our job is activating on the world’s largest stages. But how do we, a company headquartered in the middle of the United States (Milwaukee, WI, to be specific), learn the culture and currency of global markets – to the point where we’re comfortable hiring staff, contracting vendors, and activating on behalf of the world’s top brands?
Process, continual refinement & partnership.
Our process to operate internationally has been intentionally refined since we were founded nearly 50 years ago. As we’ve expanded our capabilities and reach as an agency—including joining Omnicom in 1997 and formalizing the Omnicom Experiential Group in 2018—we’ve developed methods allowing us to efficiently and cost-effectively drop into new and existing markets to provide global solutions for our clients. From activating global sporting events with multiple host countries, to holding a concert on the North Pole, we’ve seen and done it all over the years.
Our Global Event Operations Team (GEO) is stacked with established experts across the global event landscape, touching every aspect of our activations, including:
- Permanent International Presence—particularly when it comes to marquee global events like the Olympics & Paralympics and FIFA World Cup, we have onsite, permanent hubs staffed with local experts.
- Procurement Process—we leverage agency buying power and existing supplier partnerships across Omnicom Experiential Group and the broader Omnicom Network for competitive pricing; purposeful supplier vetting and sourcing; supplier diversity and sustainability initiatives.
- Hiring & HR Compliance—our global legal team and external experts ensure full understanding and compliance with local hiring standards and cultural norms. This protects our clients, as well as a seamless experience for our in-market team.
- Financial Compliance—GMR’s finance team is staffed with experts who mitigate the financial challenges associated with managing global large-scale, multi-year, and multi-currency projects. They carefully analyze a broad spectrum of financial nuances, including taxes and foreign exchange in each host country. We work with our clients’ global Treasury and Tax departments to create ways of working, often across borders, that allow them to achieve their internal objectives.
Strength in Numbers
Being part of Omnicom offers us access to a network of agencies with employees and offices worldwide, which is how we supply a local perspective and understand the nuances (like taxes and employment) in that border. By partnering with GMR, our clients receive a global network of experiential experts and the international infrastructure required to seamlessly deliver a complex, multi-national program. Our structure gives brands strong leadership with the depth and breadth of GMR’s integrated resources and international business operations. The bottom line? With our network and expertise, we activate nimbly and save clients time and money.
GMR creates unforgettable experiences worldwide. We’re designed for global markets, providing not only a single source for staffing, creative, and digital, but also the ability to seamlessly facilitate international vendor contracts and manage foreign currency.
We’d love to work together to get your brand on the next global stage. We’re already in Milan for the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Games and are looking forward to the set of global events taking place on our home turf in the United States. Interested in learning more? Please reach out, I’d love to connect.
