The reduction was expected after the conglomerate merged its development teams from Peacock and its linear networks.
The other shoe fell at NBCUniversal.
The expected layoffs in Susan Rovner’s entertainment content division have begun. According to sources, 50 employees were fired from Rovner’s newly consolidated team on Tuesday. The merger of the programming team was the hardest with Tuesday’s dismissals. Other divisions, including scheduling and acquisitions, were also affected.
The moves come after Rovner’s senior leaders of written, unwritten and late-night strengthened their respective teams. Cara Dellaverson and Alex Sepiol (who will lead the play for Peacock under former head of the original Bill McGoldrick) will lead together as drama and current development under the head of the screenplay Lisa Katz. Jeff Meyerson will oversee comedy stream and development, with Michael Sluchan overseeing children’s programming and co-productions, both of whom also report to Katz. Jenny Groom’s unwritten competition / match show unit will include Sharon Vuong overseeing the development and leading stream of Shelby Shaftel. Rod Aissa’s lifestyle and documentary series will see Rachel Smith develop and Shari Levine oversee the current.
The majority of those affected Tuesday were from positions reduced when NBCUniversal merged business and content teams from one network through network grouping into one unified group. This means that executives who previously oversaw the execution of NBC also cover Peacock and all of the company’s cable brands.
Tuesday’s dismissals reflect similar staff members who took place in November and who were part of Frances Berwick’s business department. Both layoffs are a direct result of NBCU’s decision to consolidate Rovner’s and Berwick’s entertainment content and business divisions, respectively. The massive reorganization at NBCUniversal’s TV and streaming division, overseen by NBCUni CEO Jeff Shell, and streaming and TV chairman Mark Lazarus, has consolidated staff from across the TV into two units overseen by Berwick and Rovner. keep. Berwick oversees business entertainment strategy, which includes marketing, research, procurement, finance and publicity. Rovner is charged with all entertainment content, which includes text, unwritten, live events, late nights and syndication.
Both Berwick and Rovner’s teams are each overseeing the responsibilities for a consolidated portfolio, which means that a manager working on E! and USA Network.
Berwick, the former head of Lifestyle Networks, was promoted on August 6 as part of a major restructuring at NBCU. She announced her leadership team on September 16, with the layoffs of November affecting layoffs in areas under her ability, including marketing, PR and so on. Sources note that no vacancies will be filled, which has helped reduce the bloodshed.
Rovner, meanwhile, joined NBCUni in October. In the time that followed, she met with executives in her portfolio. She launched her leadership team in November and chose to promote from within the company, while building a team to oversee scripts, unwritten and other programming areas for Peacock, NBC, USA, Syfy, Bravo, Oxygen, E! and Universal Kids.
Tuesday’s layoffs were caused after division leaders under Rovner had already strengthened their respective teams. The reduction was on retrenchments in merged departments that were eliminated in favor of centralized content teams.
NBCUniversal has seen a number of high-profile executives leave following last year’s reorganization. NBC Entertainment chairman Paul Telegdy and his top unwritten CEO, Meredith Ahr, were both ousted after an investigation at the company found them promoting a toxic culture, the allegations of which were first set out by The Hollywood Reporter.
The beloved US and Syfy president, Chris McCumber, left in September due to the restructuring that eliminated the need for individual network leaders. The respected Peacock, USA and Syfy programming head, Bill McGoldrick, left this week after being transferred for the role that eventually went to Rovner. Longtime NBC chief marketing officer Len Fogge is also leaving the company after more than a decade after taking on the role of NBC Sports Group CMO Jennifer Storms.
The layoffs among Berwick’s team are the latest in a wave of cuts at NBCU. The company’s theme park unit, sports department and Telemundo were fired earlier this year due to the company’s economic downturn caused by the new coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic, which caused huge revenues in the entertainment industry, prompted most major conglomerates to restructure. NBCUniversal, Disney and WarnerMedia have all reshaped their executive ranks in an effort to better position themselves for the streaming era, as well as save costs by consolidating resources and eliminating layoffs. All three media titans have had several rounds of layoffs, with more on the way since Disney only recently began its reorganization.