Thomson Reuters Corp. has let go five more executives, including Chris Ahearn, President of Reuters Media, as it struggles to keep up with competitors Bloomberg LP and Dow Jones & Co.
Just last week, Thomson Reuters announced the departure of Devin Wenig, the head of the company's markets division. CEO Tom Glocer has said he will fill in for Wenig.
Reuters has undergone a large restructuring since being purchased by Thomson back in 2008, with operations divided into two divisions — markets and professional. The markets division includes its financial data and news service, which generates the bulk of the company’s revenue.
However, Wenig's departure is a sign that the division has lagged behind. Much of that market data is transmitted through computer terminals, but some of Reuters' most recent releases in that sector have not produced the dividends it had hoped for.
This spree of reorganization is in part a result of those lower than expected sales.
CEO Tom Glocer has gone so far as to call it a "new organization" in an internal memo, though "streamlining" is particularly apt for what has happened of late.
Not only is Glocer taking over for Denig but some of the other executives are simply being replaced by other people in the organization, who will be donning multiple hats. In addition to Ahearn, Lee Ann Daly, Joerg Floeck, Eric Frank and John Reid-Dodick are leaving the company.
However, Glocer also indicated that major changes are done for now.
"I am not planning any further changes of this scale at Corporate or in the Professional division," he wrote.
"As I said in yesterday's message, these changes to Markets build on and complete the transformation we began in Professional earlier this year."
Glocer's staff memo follows:
Dear Colleagues,
Following my announcement yesterday about the change in leadership in Markets, this note provides additional details concerning the structure and composition of the new organization. I am not planning any further changes of this scale at Corporate or in the Professional division, where Jim Smith led a similar streamlining effort earlier this year.
Reflecting the two-platform strategy (Eikon and Elektron), I will manage the financial services business of Markets through two closely aligned operating units: Financial Professionals & Marketplaces and Enterprise Solutions. The Financial Professionals & Marketplaces unit will come together over the coming months through the combination of the present Sales & Trading (S&T) and Investment & Advisory (I&A) units. This unit will be led by Shanker Ramamurthy, who currently runs S&T.
Shanker will report directly to me, as will:
• Jon Robson, who will run an expanded Enterprise Solutions unit; .
• Susan Taylor Martin, whom I have appointed head of our Media business;
• David Turner, who will be responsible for Finance, Strategy, Commercial Policy (to be headed by Chip Cater) and also Sales and Marketing, which will be led by Chris Perry;
• Peter Moss, who will run Content and Customer Experience.
To give Shanker time to ramp up, I&A will report on an interim basis to Bob Daleo, CFO of Thomson Reuters, who will transition the business to Shanker in a careful and open process.
Editor-in-Chief Stephen Adler will also report directly to me, reflecting the cross-company role of Editorial.
Mark Sandham will head up HR for Markets in addition to his current role at Corporate. The HR, Legal and Communications functions will report to their respective function leaders at Corporate. I will chair a new Markets ExCom consisting of Shanker Ramamurthy, Jon Robson, Susan Taylor Martin, David Turner, Peter Moss, Chris Perry, Mark Sandham and Nancy Gardner, who will continue as Markets General Counsel.
As a result of this reorganization, Chris Ahearn, Lee Ann Daly, Joerg Floeck, Eric Frank and John Reid-Dodick will be leaving the company. I would like to thank each of them for their distinctive contributions over many years and to extend best wishes for the future.
As I said in yesterday’s message, these changes to Markets build on and complete the transformation we began in Professional earlier this year. This transformation is about driving growth, unleashing cross-company capabilities and making it easier to get things done. Importantly, it’s also about accountability and transparency. As we work to create a performance-driven culture, let’s make it a culture where results speak the loudest and collaboration is the norm.
Sincerely,
Tom Glocer CEO, Thomson Reuters
