IPG to cut less staff than reported, says source
Holding company Interpublic Group (IPG) is in the process of cutting considerably fewer positions than the 2,000 reported December 19 by The Guardian, a source familiar with the proceedings told PRWeek.
Asked if the number of 2,000 reported job cuts was accurate, the source replied, “That’s a really high number, and I would not expect it to be there,” adding that the company has “less work to do than Omnicom” on staff reductions. Omnicom announced December 18 that it will lay off “less than 5% of the total workforce numbers,” affecting “some, but not all” of its companies. Executives at Omnicom’s PR firms, including Fleishman-Hillard and Ketchum, said they do not have major staff layoffs in the works.
The source added that it has not yet been determined whether the job reductions will take place within the company’s Constituency Management Group (CMG) division, which contains its PR agencies, or the more advertising-focused Integrated Agency Network.
IPG’s PR business includes Weber Shandwick, GolinHarris, MWW Group, DeVries, and Carmichael Lynch Spong.
