Layoffs Hit Peacock’s Marketing Department

Layoffs have hit Peacock’s marketing department.

An estimated 50 staffers have been let go as part of a restructuring of the streamer’s marketing department under chief marketing officer Shannon Willett.

The restructuring, which Willett outlined in a memo to staff Thursday, is impacting both senior- and junior-level employees at the NBCUniversal-backed platform.

“Today we’re announcing an evolved Marketing structure that will enable us to work smarter, bringing more expertise and strategy in-house, and move faster by breaking down silos and deepening collaboration across our team and with our key partners,” Willett wrote. (Read the full memo below.)

The layoffs are the latest to come at NBCUniversal following the ouster of former CEO Jeff Shell last year. As part of Willett’s new structure, an estimated 20 new positions are expected to be created as the former Netflix exec puts her stamp on the department since she arrived at the company in April 2022.

Here’s Willett’s memo to staff:

Hi Everyone,

I’m reaching out today to share an update on the Peacock Marketing organization. Given Peacock’s growth trajectory and the shifting landscape around us, we’ve spent a lot of time over the past year thinking about what we can do as a team to better support the business. Through that process, we recognized an opportunity to reimagine the way we work to drive the next phase of Peacock’s growth. Today we’re announcing an evolved Marketing structure that will enable us to work smarter, bringing more expertise and strategy in-house, and move faster by breaking down silos and deepening collaboration across our team and with our key partners.

Our new organization will be focused on five core pillars, each with a direct impact on business strategy: Brand Creative and Marketing; Title Creative and Marketing; Marketing Strategy, Planning, Analysis and Performance Media; Growth and Lifecycle Marketing; and Publicity, Events and Talent Engagement. We heard from many of you as well as our partners that our structure was complex, and are confident that this streamlined approach will help us simplify our processes, accelerate decision making and expose us to a deeper array of marketing skillsets to learn and grow in our careers.

Here is an overview of our new structure and the five business areas reporting into me:

·         Brand Creative and Marketing: This new pillar will be responsible for brand positioning, strategy, and design identity, led by the EVP of Brand Creative and Marketing, a new leadership role for which we are hiring.

·         Title Creative and Marketing: This new team will oversee planning and execution for our Peacock scripted, unscripted and film single-title campaigns and will be led by the SVP of Title Creative and Marketing, a new leadership role for which we’re hiring.

·         Marketing Strategy, Planning, Analysis and Performance Media: Nic Julichwill continue to lead this team with a broader scope, focusing on data-informed decisions and testing across the marketing organization, as well as performance media.

·         Growth and Lifecycle Marketing: Anna Frost will continue to lead this expanded team, which will serve as the main hub for our ongoing marketing efforts focused on subscriber acquisition, engagement and retention.

·         Publicity, Events and Talent Engagement: This team will continue to be led by Shannon Buck, and encompasses series and film publicity, events and talent engagement, all of which remain key drivers of our overall brand and business.

As you may have heard, we have some colleagues leaving the company as a result of this restructure and we have held discussions with these team members today. Additionally, we will also be hiring for key new roles, including at senior levels, to support the newly aligned team.

As we move through this transition, we will continue to share as much as we can about what is changing, how it impacts you and the opportunities we have ahead. Please join me for a virtual Marketing all hands tomorrow at 9:30am PT/12:30pm ET (invite to follow) where I will go through our new structure in more detail. Thank you for joining us and for being part of the next chapter of our Peacock growth story.

Shannon