👨🏿‍🚀TechCabal Day By Day – Mediamax, Max Layoffs

Capitalism strikes as soon as extra. Or further exactly, monetary headwinds are flogging media corporations in Africa, and staff are getting the boot.

Following a group of alarming layoffs throughout the Kenyan media enterprise, Mediamax, a company well-known for political breaking info tales, has joined the fold.

The media agency has laid off staff for the sixth time in 4 years—that’s about one layoff every 8 months. Harsh monetary conditions and restrictive insurance coverage insurance policies, in step with Mediamax, are parts driving corporations to the underside.

Why’s the axe swinging with out mercy? Blame the usual suspects. The media residence says Kenyans are consuming info otherwise and product sales are falling. It’s not almost TikTok consuming into the audiences or advertisers transferring on-line. The earlier fashions aren’t working anymore. Mediamax needs to adapt or hazard packing up.

Between the strains:  500 journalists and media staff have been laid off. Nation Media Group (NMG), in August 2023, seen 15 staff reduce from their jobs—the company’s fifth spherical of job cuts. In July of that exact same 12 months, over 300 staff of Regular Group obtained one-month notices to be laid off.

Though layoffs have develop to be a default response to pressure, companies are moreover making an attempt to reinvent themselves by pivoting to digital mediums and experimenting with new codecs.

Nonetheless what happens to the workers left behind? Many would possibly transition into adjoining fields like communications, content material materials method, or digital promoting and advertising. Roles that faucet into their talents nevertheless exist exterior typical newsrooms. As legacy media adapts, so ought to its people. Though they’re sometimes with no clear roadmap, and enter into sectors which is likely to be equally altering fast.