In an attempt to position the company for future growth, a significant number of jobs will be eliminated at the Walt Disney Company. Many of those jobs will likely be at the movie studio and may include marketing, production, and home entertainment positions.
This move comes several months after an internal audit was ordered by CEO Bob Iger and CFO Jay Rasulo in an effort to identify departments that needed to be reorganized to meet new business models. No one knows for certain the exact number of jobs that will be cut. These job cuts are in addition to the recent layoffs at LucasArts and the closing last year of Junction Point – the gaming studio that created Epic Mickey.
While the movie studio aims to release close to 10 movies per year, it has been relying on Marvel and Pixar for a majority of those films. Add the recent acquisition of LucasFilm to the mix, and insiders say there is no longer the need for as many development executives as in the past.
Fiscal year 2012, which ended in September, might have been one of the Walt Disney Company’s best years with profits up 18 percent. But company insiders say these job cuts are one way for the company to streamline their operations and run more efficiently. It is expected that the cuts will be announced prior to the release of Disney’s second quarter earnings on May 7.
