14 DAY TRIAL // The expected layoffs at AOL are beginning today with a first small salvo. About 100 AOL employees will get the axe today as the company prepares for its spin-off from Time Warner and another massive wave of firings to come in the not-so-distant future. This is the first step of “Project Everst,” an effort at AOL to cut costs to counter the diminished revenue.
The layoffs haven't been confirmed officially, but multiple independent sources say that this is the case. AOL has about 6,000 employees, so 100 doesn't really mean that much, but this is just the tip of the iceberg and the company is expected to shed as much as 1,000 employees by the time the cost-cutting measures are finished.
AOL is undergoing some very big changes, as it's waiting for the final approvals from the regulators for the proposed spin-off from parent company and media giant Time Warner, which is also seeing some rough times, thanks in part to underwhelming results at AOL. The seal of approval is expected to come sometime next month, at which point the company will become an independent and publicly traded company.
By the time that happens, though, the Project Everest restructuring plan will be well underway. AOL is facing a shrinking revenue especially from its dial-up subscription business, which is headed into obscurity, but also on the advertising front. The company is trying to reinvent itself as a media platform and has been increasing the focus on original editorial content lately.
Former Google exec Tim Armstrong was brought in to oversee the transformation and the CEO spent his first three months at the helm reviewing all of the company's operations. After this, he announced plans to refocus the company and to cut costs dramatically. After the initial 100 layoffs, he is expected to put into action one of the proposals he received while reviewing the company, which is to offer voluntary buyouts to employees willing to leave.