Zee Entertainment to cut 15% of workforce in cost-cutting move

ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd on Friday said its MD & CEO Punit Goenka has initiated a process of rationalisation of workforce by 15 per cent to prune staff strength across the company.

In a regulatory filing, ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) said Goenka has proposed a lean organisation structure to the board with a lateral structure while identifying broadcast, digital, movies and music as core business units.

"In line with his overall strategic approach, the MD & CEO has initiated the process of rationalisation of the workforce by 15 per cent, that will prune the staff strength across the company to arrive at a streamlined team that is sharply focused on the set goals for the future," the company said.

As per ZEEL's annual report for 2022-23, the number of permanent employees on the roll of the company is 3,437.

ZEEL said the proposed structure is aimed towards arriving at a cost-effective operational model with speed and agility as the core areas of focus.

"It will further enable the company to chart higher growth by maintaining a keen eye on performance and profitability, thereby seamlessly executing its strategic priorities as required for a content creation company," the filing said.

The proposed team structure will foster a more collaborative performance-oriented culture, it added.

"In the lateral structure, the MD & CEO has also proposed the elevation of certain team members across businesses, in order to provide them a higher level of responsibilities; besides him assuming direct charge of the critical business verticals leading to cross functional collaboration, quick decision making and higher productivity levels," the company said.

ZEEL, however, said the detailed composition of the new operating structure will be announced after seeking the required approvals and guidance from the board.

"Building a simplified, lateral structure for the company, will ensure that we maintain a sharp focus on performance and profitability as the key growth drivers, and the structure proposed to the board is in line with this core thought. The streamlined team at ZEE will maintain a sharper focus on targeting higher levels of productivity to drive growth in order to generate value for all our stakeholders going forward," Goenka said.