AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT RAYMOND JAMES

Saint Petersburg, Florida-based Raymond James, a financial services company providing advisory services, asset management, and investment banking services, has announced a reduction in force, approximately 500 employees, or 4% of the workforce.

According to Chairman and CEO, Paul Reilly, "Heading into 2020, we were focused on improving efficiencies to prepare for potential market turbulence and recessionary environments. We were not anticipating a pandemic and the corresponding economic conditions and rate cuts that effectively wiped out half our earnings."

"We understand what this means for those impacted and their families, and for almost all of us, it means parting ways with valued colleagues and friends. While 5 percent or higher job cuts may be an annual exercise at many firms, at Raymond James any reductions are rare and are never taken lightly.”

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT DONNELLEY FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS

Chicago, Illinois-based Donnelley Financial Solutions, a supplier of printing, SEC-filing, and distribution solutions to private and public companies, has announced a reorganization that will impact 225 employees located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

The restructuring will see the shut down of offset print production in one facility and the transfer of personnel between the company's three Lancaster, Pennsylvania locations. One facility is expected to be shuttered on April 30, 2021.

According to a company spokesperson, “Recently enacted regulations have decreased the demand for printing and distribution in the mutual fund and variable annuity industry, and as a leader in providing solutions for companies to meet those regulations, we have a responsibility to adapt so we can continue to serve our clients well into the future. These decisions were not taken lightly, nor were they easy to make. We appreciate all the great work our employees in Lancaster have done over the last several decades and we are doing everything we can to support them in this transition.”

Donnelley Financial Solutions was part of a three-way breakup of RR Donnelly by incompetent management and which proved to be disastrous for shareholders as it destroyed much of the company's value. The company faced great difficulty in transitioning between traditional paper printing and electronic communications.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT SMEAD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT

Seattle, Washington-based Smead Capital Management, a manager of equity portfolios for institutions and asset management advisors, has announced that they will be relocating the company from Seattle, Washington to Phoenix, Arizona. The number of employees impacted by the move is unknown, but many employees appear to have a desire to stay in the Pacific Northwest.

According to a company statement, "The decision to relocate from Seattle to Phoenix was not a reactionary move caused by any of the events of the past several months." "As stock pickers, we continually evaluate our own business just as we would any of the companies that our clients own in their portfolios or the opportunities that the stock market presents us with for new investment.

"We took great care and deliberation in making this decision to relocate, which we began mentally exploring as early as two years ago. We announced our decision to move to Phoenix internally to our staff in January, long before COVID shutdowns or nationwide protests made their way to Seattle. Put simply, nothing happening or being reported in the news right now had any weight in our decision to relocate from Seattle to Phoenix."

"We love Seattle as well as the relationships and the experiences it has given us. We will miss the Pacific Northwest and everything it provided to us as a company and, on a more personal note, as individuals. Ultimately, Seattle was not able to provide the resources we sought for us to advise and serve our clients."

Although the decision was made prior to the civil unrest in Seattle, it should be noted that the Mayor and Governor of Washington failed to protect lives and property as rioters, looters, arsonists, and anarchists took over a major portion of Seattle's downtown area -- including a police department office which was abandoned by the order of the Mayor.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?