M&C Saatchi has made a “small number” of people redundant as it reorganises its creative team, according to industry sources.
Staff were informed about the “evolution" in "our creative ambition” in an email.
AdNews has been told that four creative directors are on their way out, and that a group of mid weight creatives will be stepping up.
The creative side of advertising has been under pressure, with fewer dollars from brands with lighter budgets and more demands.
Industry insiders say the agency has had the best March quarter since the pandemic, winning several new, yet to be announced, accounts.
However, M&C Saatchi is soon to lose one of its biggest accounts as AdNews revealed it did not make the shortlist for the Tourism Australia's last stage of pitch.
The agency has held the account since winning it in the 2018 pitch. A new agency is due to take over mid year.
The redundancies were described as part of a changing of the creative guard at M&C Saatchi.
The agency hired Steve Coll in November as group chief creative officer AUNZ, replacing Cam Blackley who departed after almost six years.
Coll served four years as Meta's head of creative shop for Australia and New Zealand and has more than two decades of experience in agencies including Leo Burnett, AMV BBDO, Havas, Droga5 and With Collective.
At that time, Justin Graham, group CEO, M&C Saatchi APAC, described Coll as a modern creative leader, with experience from integrated and digital agencies, plus media.
“Clients today seek holistic brand experiences, and Steve will play a pivotal role in creatively integrating our end-to-end group capabilities, merging impactful storytelling with data, technology, and media," Graham then said.
"We know he will resonate across our clients, ushering in a fresh approach and an inclusive culture to our group agencies”.
Coll then hired Scott Dettrick from The Monkeys, part of Accenture Song, as joint national executive creative director, working alongside Emma Robbins.
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