Week 4 - How did the Recession affect Sony

 ( Picture above - Workers leaving Sony )




“These initiatives are in response to the sudden and rapid changes in the global economic environment"  - SONY

While the recession was taking place, Sony planned to eliminate 16,000 jobs. Since December 9, 2008 Sony curbed investments, outsourced production and moved away from unprofitable businesses till March 2010. Doing so, they saved more than 100 billion dollars a year. The cuts in jobs included 16,000 full-time employees ( 5 percent of the company's electronics workforce) and 8,000 part time and seasonal workers. “The reason for this move is the deterioration of the economy, which was much larger than we expected,” Said senior vice president Naofuami Hara. Sony said on October 23, 2009 that net income will probably drop 59 percent in the year ending March 31 2010 , reducing the outlook by 38 percent. Sony said it will invest 30 percent less in its electronics business than planned under its mid-term strategy without giving figures. Sony also stated that they will cut the number of manufacturing sites by 10 percent.