Raymond James is reducing its ranks by 160 employees following the transition of Morgan Keegan accounts onto the Raymond James platform in February.
Raymond James confirmed the layoffs of 160 employees, mostly in the IT department at the St. Petersburg, Fla., headquarters, on Thursday. About 115 of the jobs being eliminated are at the home office, leaving the total staff at the headquarters at around 3,200, the firm said.
The cuts were designed to reduce overlap in specific departments, and the firm indicated that they will not spill over into the brokerage force, where the firm has retained some 95% of revenues from Morgan Keegan advisors.
From the time the Morgan Keegan acquisition was completed in April 2012, Raymond James has maintained elevated staff levels to ensure a consistent service experience for clients and to assist with the consolidation of the two firms, a spokesman for Raymond James, Steve Hollister, said in an emailed statement. As announced in February, the integration process has been completed.
Although the firm had planned some staffing cuts, Raymond James made it a priority to keep personnel onboard and in their existing locations for as long as possible following the deal, which was completed on April 2, 2012, in order to maintain the culture and stability.
Because of the remaining employment overlap, and accelerated investments and restructuring to meet the needs of the changing technology landscape, Hollister said via email. We do not expect additional sizeable employment-related changes.
The firm made the cuts after careful planning and offered severance packages and transition assistance, Hollister said.
