Disney Plans Layoffs, Hiring Freeze After Weak Fourth Quarter

Disney leadership is planning layoffs, a targeted hiring freeze, and will limit company travel as part of a larger cost-cutting movement after last week’s Q4 earnings call. It’s not yet clear how many jobs the company is looking to eliminate, or in which parts of the company the layoffs will be made.

The announcement came just four days after an underwhelming Q4 earnings call in which CEO Bob Chapek outlined losses in direct-to-consumer streaming, a brutal outlook for the company’s linear channels, and a stunted growth forecast for 2023. During the call, Chapek and CFO Christina McCarthy hinted that a slimming of the budget may be on the way.

On Friday, Chapek outlined the first steps toward that end. The CEO sent out a memo to executives in which he explained that layoffs and a hiring freeze would be implemented, that employees will be asked to travel less, and that the company will be reviewing its content and marketing spending. Those measures will be overseen by a new “cost structure taskforce” including Chapek, McCarthy, and general counsel Horacio Gutierrez.

According to Chapek, the cuts will help Disney “achieve our goals and create a more nimble company better suited to the environment of tomorrow.”

Chapek’s memo, published by Variety, can be seen in full below.

Disney Leaders-

As we begin fiscal 2023, I want to communicate with you directly about the cost management efforts Christine McCarthy and I referenced on this week’s earnings call. These efforts will help us to both achieve the important goal of reaching profitability for Disney+ in fiscal 2024 and make us a more efficient and nimble company overall. This work is occurring against a backdrop of economic uncertainty that all companies and our industry are contending with.

While certain macroeconomic factors are out of our control, meeting these goals requires all of us to continue doing our part to manage the things we can control—most notably, our costs. You all will have critical roles to play in this effort, and as senior leaders, I know you will get it done.

To be clear, I am confident in our ability to reach the targets we have set, and in this management team to get us there.

To help guide us on this journey, I have established a cost structure taskforce of executive officers: our CFO, Christine McCarthy and General Counsel, Horacio Gutierrez. Along with me, this team will make the critical big picture decisions necessary to achieve our objectives.

We are not starting this work from scratch and have already set several next steps—which I wanted you to hear about directly from me.

First, we have undertaken a rigorous review of the company’s content and marketing spending working with our content leaders and their teams. While we will not sacrifice quality or the strength of our unrivaled synergy machine, we must ensure our investments are both efficient and come with tangible benefits to both audiences and the company.

Second, we are limiting headcount additions through a targeted hiring freeze. Hiring for the small subset of the most critical, business-driving positions will continue, but all other roles are on hold. Your segment leaders and HR teams have more specific details on how this will apply to your teams.

Third, we are reviewing our SG&A costs and have determined that there is room for improved efficiency—as well as an opportunity to transform the organization to be more nimble. The taskforce will drive this work in partnership with segment teams to achieve both savings and organizational enhancements. As we work through this evaluation process, we will look at every avenue of operations and labor to find savings, and we do anticipate some staff reductions as part of this review. In the immediate term, business travel should now be limited to essential trips only. In-person work sessions or offsites requiring travel will need advance approval and review from a member of your executive team (i.e., direct report of the segment chairman or corporate executive officer). As much as possible, these meetings should be conducted virtually. Attendance at conferences and other external events will also be restricted and require approvals from a member of your executive team.

Our transformation is designed to ensure we thrive not just today, but well into the future—and you will hear more from our taskforce in the weeks and months ahead.

I am fully aware this will be a difficult process for many of you and your teams. We are going to have to make tough and uncomfortable decisions. But that is just what leadership requires, and I thank you in advance for stepping up during this important time. Our company has weathered many challenges during our 100-year history, and I have no doubt we will achieve our goals and create a more nimble company better suited to the environment of tomorrow.

Thank you again for your leadership.

-Bob