From Pink Slips to Silent Sidelining: Inside adland’s layoff and anxiety crisis

The global advertising industry is in the middle of one of its most disruptive phases in decades. What began as a cost-correction exercise after years of aggressive expansion has now turned into a prolonged cycle of layoffs, restructuring and consolidation, leaving thousands of professionals in limbo.

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In India, the anxiety is sharper because layoffs are rarely clean or clearly communicated, say industry watchers. Instead, they often arrive as silence, sidelining and slow exits- creating what many employees describe as psychological layoffs long before official ones.

Over the last 18 months, every major global holding company: WPP, Omnicom, Publicis Groupe, Interpublic Group (IPG) and dentsu, has announced restructuring moves aimed at flattening layers, integrating capabilities and improving margins. Globally, this has translated into tens of thousands of job cuts across creative, media, data and support roles. WPP alone has spoken publicly about simplifying its structure and reducing duplication across markets, while IPG and Omnicom’s completed merger has triggered role overlaps in media, data, finance and HR functions across regions, including India.

India has not been immune. Senior and mid-level executives across creative, strategy, account management and media planning have quietly exited network agencies over the past year. While precise numbers are hard to come by, because many exits are framed as “role changes” or “performance-related separations”, industry executives estimate that most large networks have cut between 5–10% of their workforce in phases since late 2023. Independent agencies, too, are feeling the pressure as client budgets shrink and mandates become more performance-led.

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What makes this phase particularly damaging, industry voices say, is not just the loss of jobs but the prolonged uncertainty surrounding them.

The next name on an internal list

“People can handle bad news. What they struggle with is ambiguity and silence,” says Amjad Ali, Group Marketing Head at Homefoil and former President at Mullen Lintas.

“When no one talks about what’s going to happen, that silence becomes the biggest issue. It derails normal life and creates extreme anxiety.”

This sentiment is echoed across levels.

A senior agency executive, currently facing uncertainty around their role, explains that restructuring often comes with “grey zones” rather than clarity. “Agencies won’t directly tell you that you’re being laid off. Instead, they stop assigning work, exclude you from conversations and force you into a mental state where leaving feels like the only option. This uncertainty is no less damaging than a layoff.”

The mental toll of this environment is becoming impossible to ignore.

Advertising has always been a high-pressure industry, but consolidation has intensified the strain. Long hours, constant client pressure and shrinking teams now coexist with the fear of being the next name on an internal list.

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Naresh Gupta, co-founder of Bang in the Middle, believes part of the problem lies in how talent leadership has been deprioritised at large networks. “We rarely see HR leaders from network agencies at industry forums. That tells you something,” he says. “The networks may have policies and frameworks, but they lack leadership that can champion talent meaningfully. When mergers happen, there’s no real people-first plan to fall back on.”

Gupta adds that while reskilling and internal mobility are often cited as solutions, the reality is harsher.

“Jobs are shrinking across the industry. There isn’t enough leeway to simply move people around. That limits what HR leaders can actually do.”

From an organisational standpoint, experts argue that uncertainty is psychologically harder to process than bad news.

Rajesh Aggarwal, Founder and CEO of integrated agency DAIKO FHO, believes leadership behaviour during restructuring defines long-term stability. “Organisations must lead with clarity, transparency and human connection,” he says. “At the same time, individuals should focus on upskilling, staying networked and building resilience.”

Aggarwal contrasts this with the operating model of standalone integrated agencies. “In agencies like ours, senior leadership works directly with clients. We function almost like consultancies, embedded with client teams. That reduces uncertainty and builds long-term stability.”

For employees who have already faced redundancy or see it coming, the emotional impact often runs deeper than the loss of income.

“Redundancy is not just the loss of a job, it’s the loss of identity and confidence,” says Ali.

“Advertising professionals define themselves by the work they do. When that disappears suddenly, it takes time to rebuild.”

Many industry leaders stress that layoffs today are not a reflection of talent shortages but of structural change.

“Redundancy reflects consolidation, not a lack of ability,” Aggarwal notes. “People need to move from defining themselves by roles to defining themselves by value.”

That value, experts say, increasingly lies in transferable skills: strategic thinking, client leadership, problem-solving, data interpretation and an understanding of AI-driven tools.

While creativity remains central, its application is evolving.

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As Aggarwal points out, iconic campaigns conceptualised decades ago—such as Gullu Sen’s work, including the recent Maruti Suzuki service station campaign—prove that strong ideas endure even as structures change.

Visibility and networking are also becoming survival tools

Jackie J. Thakkar, Creative Director, believes professionals must now actively build personal brands. “Keeping LinkedIn updated, sharing work and staying visible matters more than ever. Roles often get discussed long before they’re formally advertised.”

Thakkar also highlights a less-discussed vulnerability: stagnating compensation.

“After years in the same role with limited appraisals, many professionals unknowingly fall below market value, making them more exposed during restructuring.”

At the leadership level, the challenge is balancing cost efficiency with human cost, something many holding companies struggle to get right post-merger.

“One outcome of mergers is layoffs to improve efficiency,” Ali says. “But when employees keep wondering ‘who’s next?’, productivity drops, attrition rises and culture erodes. The savings quietly get neutralised.”

Transparent communication, mental health support and career transition assistance are no longer optional, industry voices argue.

Thakkar is blunt: “Mental health support should be a core responsibility, not a perk. Bringing in professional counsellors and offering real transition support is basic empathy.”

Even employees acknowledge that restructuring is sometimes unavoidable.

A senior executive notes that established organisations often attempt role changes before layoffs.

“Proper discussions do happen. Some employees accept new roles, some don’t. But timely and honest communication makes all the difference.”

As the ad industry continues to reshape itself around technology, data and performance, the human cost of that transformation is becoming increasingly visible.

The question now is not whether layoffs will continue, but whether agencies can learn to manage them without eroding the very talent and creativity on which their businesses depend.

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In an industry built on ideas, how leaders treat people during moments of uncertainty may ultimately define who survives the consolidation wave and who doesn’t.