Perpetual has commenced work on its strategic cost reductions, with the first of the company’s planned 300 job cuts believed to have taken place this week.
InvestorDaily understands the listed financial services firm began making staff redundancies two days ago.
It is believed the cuts, which the company made public late last month, were made across the company’s private client division.
Industry speculation suggested ‘D-day’ had arrived for a number of advisers within the group, with claims around three paraplanners were among those let go.
A company spokesperson would not be drawn on the validity of the speculation nor the potential number of job losses so far.
“Perpetual announced last week that the company will be reshaped as a large independent boutique wealth manager that will best leverage its leading position in Australia’s financial services marketplace,” the spokesperson told InvestorDaily.
“Perpetual will simplify its structure with fewer managers and wider spans of teams. Full-time headcount will be reduced by 300 over the next two years.”
Late last month, Perpetual chief executive Geoff Lloyd revealed further details about the company’s planned 300 job losses, including the divisions that would be directly affected.
Lloyd told InvestorDaily the cuts would be felt in the corporate, management and sales support, operations and property sectors, while client- and revenue-facing jobs would be preserved.
Jobs have also been axed at an executive level, with Lloyd’s direct reports being cut from 11 to six since he took over as Perpetual’s chief in February.
He said Perpetual’s “rapid expansion over the last 10 years has added unnecessary complexity”, adding that it was “time to shed that complexity and refocus on our core strengths”.
Perpetual will slash 40 per cent of its workforce as it cuts 300 full-time equivalents (FTE) and sells its lenders’ mortgage services business, which employs 280 FTEs – with the buyer to be announced in August.
The cuts are part of Perpetual’s three-year restructuring program.
