CC laying off 20% of workforce on 1/5?

[MMtP]

After talking to some CC Employees in the know, this is just a rumor, and things won't go down this way.. The new owners/investors (Bain Capital) don't believe in cutting jobs for the bottom line - it's just not the way they do things, because it never works in the long term..

That being said, budgets haven't been finalized, and like any other company in this economy, there could be cuts... The 20% number is just a rumor..

 

[MINDonDAradio247]

i cant believe how coldhearted some of the people in this thread are. I have also made enemies in this industry. But I still would never wish unemployment on any of them. Even the ones who did me wrong. I know how it is to be out of radio trying your hardest to get back in and it isnt fun.

I think some of you need to express some compassion.

And who knows... why you smurk and poke fun at the people who will eventually lose their job you might find yourself one of them. Then it wont be so funny now will it?

It is most likely the majority of the broadcasting companies will be letting go of staff in the next 30 days but how different is that from every January?

I feel blessed to be where I am at currently. But I also acknowledge no one is safe. Whatever happens happens.

 

[WKomm]

MIND - I'm with ya. I've done this radio thing a looong time. There have been a handful of folks who are actively evil (as in - they DO stay awake nights thinking of ways to mess you up) that I at least smiled upon hearing they were bounced. But not many. Karma seems to be a difficult topic for many to get yet, regardless of one's religious views, it seems to be a truth.

It's sad to see our industry suffer from both forces it can't control (the economy) as well as the actions of fools.

 

[admangel]

Unfortunately this is my first experience to a blog. I am most likely on of the 20% that is probably going to "get it" on "bloody Monday" and has been living through the "hostile work environment" for the last several months + and am now walking on even BIGGER egg shells waiting for the GM to return and for the "announcement" or in our case of how things are done here town hall meeting of what is what possibly before or after whoever it is gets it. I always think its me.

I grew up in this business, I know what it takes and what is what and I also know right from wrong and have seen a lot and I mean A LOT of both over the last 6+ years. It's all sad, very sad. :-\

 

[MT1]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

 

[LasVegasRadioJunky]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

DITTO!

 

[dallasboyz]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

Its absolutely irrelevant how long you have been in a business. If you or your job was performing to the level of expectation, you would have nothing to worry about.

 

[Waiting2012]

I would hope thats true. But, I'm not counting on that idea to save positions from being eliminated.

 

[SonoSational18]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

Its absolutely irrelevant how long you have been in a business. If you or your job was performing to the level of expectation, you would have nothing to worry about.

Wake up and smell the coffee!!! In this day and age, excellent people get the axe because of budget cuts. Sometimes you get canned because you screwed up. Sometimes you get canned because s*** happens. Luckily I've only been fired twice in my career. One time I absolutely deserved it. The other time was because of infighting in the owner's family... totally beyond my control. Both times it sucked.... and when I go to the office tomorrow... well who knows....

Try not to be so callous.... there are some very good and very competent people who will have a date with the HR executioner in the near future.... at Clear Channel, at CBS, at Emmis, at Cox, et. al. Over 24 hours have transpired since the close of that Dallas meeting. The fact that nothing has been said, nor leaked out on the station side both encourages me and makes me nervous. (Yes, I know about the Katz layoffs.) I've stopped speculating. The real story will emerge soon enough. It will probably be not a gloomy or doomy as the posters and pundits have speculated. It undoubtedly will not be good news for some.

 

[johnqdoe]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

Its absolutely irrelevant how long you have been in a business. If you or your job was performing to the level of expectation, you would have nothing to worry about.

Absolutely, positively, 110% FALSE!!!!! I once got a ratings bonus....and my severence check on the same day.

 

[DudeFan]

Bain is not in it for the long term. Investment funds never are. They are there to maximize their investment and usually that means parting things out, reducing costs, and shutting down marginal businesses to boost cashflow. Just as Cerberus is not in it to operate Chrysler long term, Bain ain't in it to be a broadcasting operator.

 

[InTheBiz]

DudeFan is absolutely right. Anyone who has been told by CC that Bain isn't going to drastically cut payroll because it's "just not smart in the long run" is a sucker who is being lied to, plain and simple. The May, 2007 issue of Vanity Fair (of all places) had a GREAT article in plain English about how these private equity firms work. It was written by Michael Wolff. Look it up.

It's not about making a better product or improving the health of the company. It's not even about "profit" and "loss." It's about "debt" and "equity." It's simple math. It's not hard to find a bank who will put up, say, 8x what the company is actually worth in order to buy the company. So these private equity firms don't even have to front most of the purchase money. Then for every x amount of dollars they can cut to make the company look more "profitable," the bank will loan them MORE money. They pay back the original loan and investors and eventually, as long as they can keep finding ways to cut expenses, the bank will actually PAY THEM TO RUN THE COMPANY. And by "run the company" they really mean "continue to slash costs." It's that simple.

And when any major company is looking to cut costs, what are typically two of the largest line items? PAYROLL and MARKETING.

The end. If you are working for Clear Channel or ANY company that has been purchased by a private equity group, HAVE A PLAN B for the sake of yourself and your family. You have been warned.

 

[Mr_Place]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

Its absolutely irrelevant how long you have been in a business. If you or your job was performing to the level of expectation, you would have nothing to worry about.

Absolutely, positively, 110% FALSE!!!!! I once got a ratings bonus....and my severence check on the same day.

I once got fired because my bonus arrangement was too lucrative, and when I maxed it out in a way my bosses never expected, it blew their fiscal projections.

 

[lowpower]

I would have thought they would happen this morning if they were to happen and it's almost COB on the east coast and still nothing. It will be interesting if in fact no cuts were made. Great news for the employees that are probably anxious and nervous right now though about their status at the company.

has anyone heard of any happening anywhere except for katz?

 

[johnqdoe]

I would have thought they would happen this morning if they were to happen and it's almost COB on the east coast and still nothing. It will be interesting if in fact no cuts were made. Great news for the employees that are probably anxious and nervous right now though about their status at the company.

has anyone heard of any happening anywhere except for katz?

look for them to come around a payday...15th and last day of the month....

 

[vtr]

Maybe it's a good idea to stop wasting time worring about when, and do the jobs we all have now.

 

[MikeBratton]

Think about how sad this all is to those of us who have 3 decades into the business.

Its absolutely irrelevant how long you have been in a business. If you or your job was performing to the level of expectation, you would have nothing to worry about.

You know, boyz, it's been suggested I was too generous to you in my last rebuttal to your nonsense.

Those suggestions were valid, but, hey--I'm a generous kind of guy.

If the corporate decision is to cut costs on a single shift, in a department, on a station, in a group, or corporate-wide, performance only goes so far in mitigating an individual's departure. I only have two decades in the business, thanks, but I can tell you that I've never lost a gig due to my performance. Matter of fact, my most recent departure came in spite of growing an audience, improving the overall production quality of the station, improving client relations, and making well-received personal appearances. The GM who let me loose literally had tears in his eyes as he did so; it was strictly a budget-cutting move.

To borrow a phrase, boyz, it's "absolutely irrelevant" what you think you know, because from the evidence you've presented, you don't know much at all.

 

[Gumboots]

The May, 2007 issue of Vanity Fair (of all places) had a GREAT article in plain English about how these private equity firms work. It was written by Michael Wolff. Look it up.

It's not about making a better product or improving the health of the company. It's not even about "profit" and "loss." It's about "debt" and "equity." It's simple math. It's not hard to find a bank who will put up, say, 8x what the company is actually worth in order to buy the company. So these private equity firms don't even have to front most of the purchase money. Then for every x amount of dollars they can cut to make the company look more "profitable," the bank will loan them MORE money. They pay back the original loan and investors and eventually, as long as they can keep finding ways to cut expenses, the bank will actually PAY THEM TO RUN THE COMPANY. And by "run the company" they really mean "continue to slash costs." It's that simple.

And when any major company is looking to cut costs, what are typically two of the largest line items? PAYROLL and MARKETING.

Wolff's Vanity Fair article does a good job of explaining how the Private Equity firms work. But I have a question: if profitability is only measured by cutting payroll and marketing, why don't they just cut 50%? Or 75%? Seems to me that excessive cutting results in diminished revenues and lost value of the company. Even PE groups have to keep it profitable-- based on good old P/L--in order to eventually sell it off. So all they can really afford to do is trim "fat," not meat or bone.

 

[pump]

I like many of you have been in radio for many many years and yes the business has changed many times since and I agree with some of your comments BUT most of it is simply rumors. Yes times are bad all over and when that happens people get cut it is that simple. If your cluster is already bare bones or getting there and dispite the economy your cluster is doing ok then YOU should be ok as well. If on the other hand you are over staffed and have several making BIG money then I would be concerned for your job no matter if it is radio...TV or whatever it is. Bain may not be in this for the long haul but they can't cut everyone out...but cutting fat (and there is fat in every company) is going and has happened. CC is no different than anyother compnay in tough times. Rumors have destroyed many people so until you have 100% fact as to waht will happen and when just continue to do your job the best you know how and if it happens there is nothing you can do about it. I have heard of many CC clusters that have not been affected and may not because they saw the wrigin on the wall and cut staff a year or so ago. It's the FAT and over staff they are looking at. To many of the same at each cluster. Hang in there adn stop thr rumor mills.

 

[bartstar]

Radio, like any other business is all political. Many of us played the game, and some of us, mavericks that happen to give a crap, didn't play the political game (or don't know how). What bothers me is that being a sales person is a one-man job. It is your own ability and know-how to do the job. Some do it better and work harder and make money. And some skate, and don't have a problem taking a salary and never seeing a commission again. But if you are not playing the political game...you are treated so differently. And either let go or asked to bill more, do more....But sales is all about a person's individuality. It is so stupid.
I think managers are so intimidated by mavericks that actually have the passion for radio.
Instead, they protect their friends.