Today we learned that Ogilvy’s Chicago office went through a round of layoffs.
The move affected approximately 5 percent of the total Chicago staff, meaning that between 15 and 25 employees are no longer with Ogilvy as of this afternoon.
Unfortunately, we do not have names or specifics regarding the departments affected at the moment.
Recent work by the agency’s Chicago office includes the “Hemingway in 15 Seconds” Instagram campaign and another series of ads for tech service provider CDW, but all major staffing changes for the year to date happened in New York:
- The promotion of Ben Richards to the newly-created position of worldwide chief strategy officer
- The promotion of Corinna Falusi to ECD/senior partner
- The retention of Chief Production Officer Matt Bonin, who planned to leave for an undisclosed position but quickly reconsidered
- The departure of Creative Director Otto Bell and Director of Creative Management Lisa Clunie (neither of whom have announced new positions)
In November, we did receive word that portions of the S.C. Johnson business would be moving from Ogilvy Chicago to Energy BBDO, but there’s no indication that today’s staffing reduction had anything to do with a specific account.