This week, Publicis Groupe continued its cost-cutting efforts with a large round of layoffs at internal financial services unit Re:Sources. The move is in keeping with the third-largest holding company’s push to streamline operations via consolidation or, in this case, automation.
Re:Sources is a little-known but critical part of the larger Publicis organization. It was founded in 2002 and grew to support all agencies across the global Publicis network by handling such services as IT, financials, accounting, tax preparation, procurement and real estate functions in order to “leave the units to do what they do best in terms of looking after the client’s business.”
Today a spokesperson declined to elaborate on specifics regarding the shift but confirmed that “Re:Sources is automating some of its financial operations in order to deliver globally standardized financial/accounting services such as billings and payments through our Shared Service Center.”
One source puts the number of related layoffs at 120 or more. According to the Re:Sources LinkedIn page, the group expanded over the past 15 years to employ more than 800 across 30 offices in the U.S. and hundreds more overseas.
Recent Glassdoor reviews claim that Publicis had largely stopped hiring new Re:Sources employees since acquiring Sapient, opting to outsource much of the work to the latter’s offices in India instead.
The holding company has been transparent about its plans to cut expenses around the world over the past year-plus by restructuring its networks, combining teams to offer lower prices to new clients like Walmart and USAA and, in cases like this one, automating wherever possible.
One week ago, Maurice Levy announced a $1.44 billion write-down after Publicis missed Q4 revenue goals.
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