Are Agencies Using the Down Economy As Excuse to Cut Dead Weight?

At the risk of sounding both naive and insensitive, we pose this question to you, oh beloved readers. When CP+B cut about 7 percent of staff (60 of 900+) yesterday, we were naturally taken aback. First, they offered the info up on a platter (not only to AgencySpy, but most of the other trades published the news within minutes of our post going up) &#151 at first it felt like transparency but at second glance it feels a bit fishy.

Excuse our skepticism, but citing a down economy as a reason for cutbacks when your agency has been kicking all kinds of ass, and winning $300 million accounts, feels like a thinly veiled excuse to lop off a few extra salaries and bolster the bottom line.

We’ve heard rumors that at least one large agency is planning to do just that. So as not to cause a panic, we’ll refrain from naming it here. But we will say that the shop we’re thinking of is not unlike Crispin.

What do you think of CP+B’s move? Are they hurting, using preventative measures or using the economy as an excuse to cut costs? Screw the poll, tell us what you think.

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More: “CP+B Lays Off 60, Cites Economy”

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