dentsu to Slash 6,000 Jobs and Consolidate Brands

Tokyo-based marcoms giant dentsu is planning to cut 6,000 jobs - around 12.5 per cent of its 46,560-strong workforce based outside Japan - in the next twelve months, as a result of the downturn in global spending caused by Covid-19. The group says it will also eliminate 154 of its brands.

dentsu comprises two networks: dentsu japan network, which oversees the group's agency operations in Japan, and dentsu international, headquartered in London and overseeing its agency operations outside of Japan. Its portfolio of brands includes business-to-business research provider B2B International, B2B marketing agency gyro, and data-driven consumer insights and analytics specialist Merkle.

Last month, the group rolled out a restructuring plan to consolidate dentsu international's more than 160 brands into just six in two years, and cut 12.5% of total headcount, with combined resulting savings of nearly £640m. Details about which subsidiaries are to be eliminated will be announced at a later date.

The group, led by President and CEO Toshihiro Yamamoto (pictured) and with a total of c.66,000 employees, has forecast a consolidated net loss of 23.7bn yen (c.£170m) for 2020. Of c.18,000 staff based in Japan, around 230 have so far applied for early retirement.

Web site: www.dentsu.com .