Time Magazine Lays Off 22 Employees Amid Publishing Pullback, Restructuring

Time The magazine cuts 22 divisions across departments, including editorial, technology, sales & marketing and Time Studios.

Invitation to employees announcing layoffs on Tuesday, Time CEO Jessica Sibley cited business challenges, including low advertising budgets, competition and changes in consumer behavior, and a shift in focus to major growth areas, including Climate, AI and Health.

“Like our peers, we continue to face significant challenges – from increased competition in reduced advertising budgets to drastic changes in consumer behavior, changes in search and social trends, and general economic uncertainty. We are making changes now to our business to protect against this time of change and unpredictability in the media industry,” Sibley wrote in a memo.

At the end of July, Dave O’Connor, president of Time Studios, he said, has reorganized the division into a single unit amid a tough market for scripted and unscripted content.

The magazine lowered its paywall last year in order to attract more advertising money. In January, TimeThe organizers said that 15 percent of its members were subject to dismissal at some point.

Full Invitation:

group,

Today we are sharing that we have made the difficult decision to eliminate 22 roles across several departments including editorial, technology, sales & marketing and TIME Studios. People & Culture sent calendar invitations this morning to all employees affected by this decision, and will hold meetings with those people and their managers today. It is incredibly difficult to say goodbye to our talented colleagues; we are very grateful for their contributions to the culture, mission and legacy of TIME, and we will support them greatly during this transition.

This decision was not made lightly, but it is necessary to build a sustainable company in order to advance TIME’s mission. We have made this decision now for several reasons:

First, like our peers, we continue to face significant challenges – from increased competition in reduced advertising budgets to drastic changes in consumer behavior, changes in search and social trends, and general economic instability. We are making changes now across our business to protect against this time of change and unpredictability in the media industry.

Next, we must adjust and change our organizational structure to shift resources to our greatest growth opportunities. At the highest level, we need to fully own the leadership. This is the most important, most influential, and most commercially successful work we do at TIME. Sam will continue to act as the northern star for our editorial team. We will guide our work to promote and include leaders at all levels; holding and holding accountable the leaders who change our world; to inspire aspiring leaders. We will also provide journalism that serves these current and future leaders. We will focus primarily on the leadership areas where we thrive today: Climate, AI and Health.

That focus will be the basis for further significant business changes. We are driving significant revenue growth through direct marketing advertising sponsorships and strategic partnerships, which will continue to be a focus as part of our transition to a B2B revenue strategy. To strengthen this process, we will also lead the growth of our events business – which has grown significantly in the number of events we produce and attract advertising partners – using TIME Studios to develop products and brands us, and pursue new revenue, including growing advertising on social media and expanding our global footprint through local language licensing. We will continue to pursue new strategic partnerships, building on our success with partners such as Taboola, Statista, and our recent agreements with AI companies, which safeguard the future of TIME and our trusted journalism. .

Finally, to improve our financial position, we must continue to operate as efficiently as possible. We have actively worked to reduce our operating costs by reducing discretionary spending, reallocating resources to declining areas of our business, reducing the use of contractors, outsourcing outside the US, and exploring options for a smaller headquarters in New York.

I understand that this news is troubling. We ask that all employees plan to work remotely today while you deal with these issues. Managers and members of the People & Culture team will be on hand to provide more information in the coming days. We will meet again as a company in the first week of September for a discussion about TIME’s strategy and to answer your questions.

The work we do is not easy. Together, our efforts to build a sustainable and profitable business will help us continue to deliver and expand our mission for the next century. Thank you for your commitment to change and the future of TIME.

Thank you,

Jess