SPH Media lays off 34 employees in technology division

SINGAPORE: A total of 34 employees in SPH Media’s technology division have been laid off, the company said on Monday (Nov 4).
The cuts affect employees across various teams and ranks, and account for about 10 per cent of the division, reported The Straits Times, which is published by SPH Media.
“To remain competitive and sustainable amidst the changing media landscape, SPH Media has restructured its technology team,” a company spokesperson said in response to CNA’s queries.
“This includes streamlining its operations and resourcing across different technology functions.”
The company spokesperson said the decision was made after “careful consideration and exploring various alternatives”.
“SPH Media is committed to supporting the affected employees and providing them with comprehensive severance packages that adhere to tripartite guidelines, career coaching, job placement assistance and counselling support to help ease their transition,” the spokesperson added.
SPH Media was formed in 2021 after the former Singapore Press Holdings was restructured and delisted.
It also publishes The Business Times and Lianhe Zaobao, among other titles.
Various functions in the technology division have been streamlined, resulting in job cuts, said the company’s chief operating officer Loh Yuh Yiing and chief technology officer Kaythaya Maw in an e-mail to staff on Monday morning.
The company has accelerated its digital transformation over the past three years, and this required an “urgent and aggressive” ramp-up in various areas of technology, said Ms Loh. 
However, this ramp-up was not at a level that the company could afford to sustain beyond 2024, she reportedly said.
Nearly 20 per cent of SPH’s annual costs is spent on technology, with payroll-related expenditure accounting for almost two-thirds of this.
The COO noted that media companies globally are grappling with persistent declines in revenue and growing costs.
“SPH too, faces similar pressures to find a sustainable way forward,” she said, adding that job redundancies were the last resort.
Ms Loh said there are no plans for “further exercises of this nature”, although “regular review and resource optimisation” would continue to be necessary, The Straits Times reported.