SPH Magazines to reduce workforce by 20 per cent
SPH Magazines will reduce its work force by about 20 per cent, as the magazine arm of Singapore Press Holdings embarks on a major restructuring exercise.
According to a press release from the media conglomerate on Tuesday (20 March), SPH Magazines had 379 employees as of August 2017. This will be reduced to about 300 via ongoing staff attrition and redeployment. Thirteen staff members who could not be redeployed will be retrenched in March.
SPH Magazines said the staff reduction has already largely been achieved.
As part of the restructuring, the custom publishing team (Custom Content Solutions) and its contract titles will be transferred to Focus Publishing, the contract publishing subsidiary of SPH’s Chinese Media Group.
The other operating units will be co-located in new premises at the News Centre in Toa Payoh North. The group previously operated at separate locations at Genting Lane and Outram Road.
Meanwhile, the editorial division will launch shared digital desks to speed up the company’s digital-first strategy. The title teams will continue to handle both print and digital content.
SPH Magazines’ CEO Loh Yew Seng said that no titles will be closed in the restructuring exercise, although the performance of titles will continue to be monitored.
The group’s stable of magazines includes well-known titles such as Her World and Cleo. It also has more than 100 digital editions in Singapore and the region, and various digital newsstands.
