Edelman lays off 330 people globally amidst restructuring

Integrated communications advisory firm Edelman has laid off 300 employees across its global network - 5.3% of its total workforce. In tandem, it will sunset the Edible, Revere, Salutem, Mustache, EGA and Delta brands. 

It will however maintain two client specific entities - Assembly for Microsoft and Kinisi for J&J. Meanwhile, Conflicts will be managed by its sister company Zeno and RUTH. DXI, Smithfield and UEG will be connective tissue between Edelman and Zeno in the DJE family. 

This comes as the company restructures. "Our strategy for the past five years has been in two directions. We built an advisory capacity to compete with specialist firms in financial, public affairs, employee engagement and impact. Simultaneously, we also have been building our marketing business, emphasising earned creative based on action, with ideas that connect with the burgeoning creator economy. We structured our advisory units as boutiques and positioned creative and strategists as dedicated teams," said CEO Richard Edelman in a statement. 

Don't miss: Edelman picks Rakesh Thukral as CEO for Asia Pacific 

"Clients now require integration of specialist services into the larger firm for speedy access to our geographic reach, deep industry knowledge and creative ability. We are best when we bring the full force of Edelman to the complex problems facing our clients. Corporate affairs, marketing and government affairs are now all closely aligned on the client side. We are skating to where the puck will be — everything is interconnected now," he added. 

In the same statement, Edelman said he is "deeply optimistic about the future", adding that it is "ideally suited for a world of geopolitical uncertainty, the proper role of business in societal issues and dispersion of authority away from experts". 

"We maintain our 60-office network as a dramatic competitive advantage. Our creative and strategy teams have broken the glass ceiling with ideas premised on action. We are investing in our own large language model premised on 25 years of Trust data that enables AI as a predictive tool, both communications and action, enabling better decisions by business related to trust," said Edelman.

The CEO said that the firm is working on the most important challenges including advising the food industry on labelling, on the acceptance of artificial intelligence as a trusted partner in society, and the potential of immunology in disease treatment and prevention.

"I look forward to a strong performance in 2025," added Edelman. 

This news comes as Edelman makes several appointments across the globe. In October, it elevated Anthony Chelvanathan to global creative partner. Chelvanathan is the firm's first ever global creative partner and will work alongside global chief creative officer Judy John. He retains his chief creative officer role for Edelman Canada. 

Closer to home, Edelman picked Rakesh Thukral to succeed Warren Fernandez as CEO for the firm’s operations in Asia Pacific (APAC). Fernandez will be stepping down from the role to pursue a new opportunity and will remain with the firm until the end of the year to ensure a smooth transition, the agency said. 

Thukral will report to Ed Williams, Edelman’s president for international in his new role, and the appointment is effective immediately.

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