Layoffs Scheduled for Christmas
October 15, 2008
You heard it here first, The Christmas season is going to be miserable. We are expecting to see massive layoffs on or about Christmas time, across all industries. The scary part is that pink slip will hit you before anyone else if you work at an advertising agency. It has already ripped apart the UK. NOTE: Prime Minister Gordon Brown said - “tell the unemployed to go lag houses”. In other words, he doesn’t care and the chances are Washington will react the same way.
The typical staffer at an Ad Agency honestly should be worrying about their job, if your boss didn’t discuss this with you already, then he or she is already planning on axing you.
Many companies are preparing their 2009 budgets and pretty much will have some sort of plan in early to mid-December. Some firms have differing year ends, but for advertising concerns many are waiting for several things to clear. They want to really know where the bottom is in this recession, with the debate not if we are in recession or not, but rather if this is the start of another depression.
Regardless of your view, we are in a financial crisis. Your clients are going to presenting to your boss a massive decrease in spending for 2009, your boss is going to look at you and view you as a cost, not an asset.
At that exact moment, it’s game over. You are out of a job.
They are going to want to “right size” “down size” “fire everyone” whatever term you choose to make sure they stay afloat during this crisis.
Expect massive layoffs in December, and honestly brace for impact. Do not go haywire buying Christmas / Hanukkah / holiday gifts. Because you will be facing a bad day in the next few months.
See this is why it’s really going to be bad, all these layoffs will take place in the last 6 weeks of 2008. The market will be flooded with resumes going to companies that are in the process of laying off people. There are no jobs to be found during that critical moment.
People in the advertising space have noted that in 2001-2002, tens of thousands of people were fired during that recession. That was a walk in the park compared to where I worked… in the dot.com crash.
Perhaps the best way to phrase it is that during that time, virtually all the Nasdaq traded startups failed. Virtually all of them.
Pets.com, Webvan.com, Boo.com, govworks.com, Kozmo.com, Kibu.com, Freeinternet.com
The layoffs were devastating, in a scale that was massive compared to the advertising space. That industry has seen a depression in our lifetime. Take my advice, this is going to be just as bad for the next few months.
A modern economy cannot survive without banks, and currently that is what we have… an economy running without banks. Companies cannot finance an advertising campaign…. meaning that you get fired.
Please cut down costs and brace for impact because it will be ugly soon.
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Yeah . . . I pretty much feel the big bullseye on my back. The question is, where to jump to? Jumping to the client side (assuming one still can) will be of little help when their layoffs start. And as for starting up something on your own, now is a really scary time to do that.
Wheatley ,
We are all scared right now.. the problem is what I posted above is 100% true.. but I don’t have a solution… starting your own firm now might a great option.. if you have the funding and necessary skillset to wait out the 2-3 year time frame it takes to generate profits… and that is based on your new firms ability to have a valid business model.
A tidbit of knowledge that might be helpful, many of the strongest companies started during downturns and recessions.
They started off being cheap… saving money.. being frugal… and still used those concepts during the upswing as well.. allowing them to bank decent amounts of money for the next downturn.
Jumping ship to the client that is laying off people and reducing their ad spends isn’t really a valid option right now in most cases.
I’d say start your own firm… but you really.. really.. really need to plan this out…
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