Just before 9:00 am ET Monday, Whirlpool Corp. made the surprise announcement that the company will be shifting to “a more simplified and focused business model as part of its ongoing portfolio transformation.”
The company confirmed in a prepared statement that the transformation includes job cuts.
Job elimination discussions were said to have commenced this morning. Monday’s focus is apparently looking at reorganizing the top layers of the company and select areas of work.
No word yet on the number of job cuts associated with the announcement. A company spokesman directed us to the official announcement.
The statement from Whirlpool Corporation:
“Whirlpool Corporation has announced today that the company is moving to a more simplified and focused organizational model to support its continued transformation into a high-growth, high-margin business that will enable its long-term success. The company will shift to a decentralized model with more autonomous business units and a leaner, more strategic corporate center.
“Different from other organizational changes, the company is focused on changing the work and is adapting a two-wave approach, allowing leaders closer to the work to own the organizational design of the future. The company believes this diligent and purposeful approach will enable a better organizational design in alignment with the future needs of the business.
“The first wave impacts are being shared today, focusing on the top layers of the organization and select areas of work – including changes to roles, work scopes, and in some cases elimination of positions. The second wave will focus on the rest of the organization, and those changes will be shared no later than early May.
“Impacted employees will receive transition support, including a comprehensive severance compensation package and other services. While these are not easy choices, we know they are required to secure the long-term success of the company.”
