Shipping specialist Ince & Co is to cut more than 30 fee earner and business services jobs in a redundancy round touted as ensuring the ‘ongoing success’ of the firm.
The firm launched a month-long consultation process today (June 5) after which between 32 and 36 associates and business services staff will lose their jobs. Business services staff are expected to be most-affected.
Ince’s London office head Andrew Jameson commented: ‘Like all businesses we need to adapt to ever-changing market conditions by ensuring that we have the right people doing the right job in the right location. While the proposed changes that we are making are for the good of our business and the ongoing success of our firm, we recognise that this will be unsettling for our people, who we will be fully supporting during this difficult period.’
It has been making changes in recent years aimed at improving business performance. This includes restructuring its partnership, setting up a bonus remuneration pool which shifted the firm’s equity spread from £140,000 – £430,000 to £140,000 – £550,000, realigning its sector groups and investing in its new premises and IT infrastructure.
Its geographic focus is also shifting, evidenced in senior partner Jan Heuvels’ relocation to Hong Kong in October, with China’s Belt and Road Initiative cited as a key factor in his upheaval. In a similar move, the firm’s chairman, Paul Herring, moved to Piraeus to head up Ince’s Greek office at the beginning of this year.
Heuvels commented: ‘The structural changes that we plan to implement reflect the steps that we continue to make to internationalise our business. This exercise will ensure that we have the necessary support on the ground in the location that it is most needed.’
