In a message sent to all staff, Adrian Jeakings (pictured) said: “2009 has been a very difficult year for consumer media and Archant has not been spared the ravages of the recession. However, I am delighted to be able to tell you that we are on track to hit the targets that we set at the beginning of the year, before the full scale of the downturn had become apparent.
“This has been achieved through the hard work and dedication of all of our people. I am proud that we have managed to get through the worst recession for 80 years whilst accelerating our development activities, in anticipation of the recovery.
“I have been particularly impressed by the enthusiasm and creativity that has been shown by the many people that I have met around the company during the year, and by what I have heard about people that I have not yet had the chance to meet,” said Adrian.
“The new ideas, whether they come from editorial, distribution, sales, or one of our back office teams, set us in good stead for the future. Next year will not be easy - there is still huge political and economic uncertainty in the UK - but I am confident that we are in a strong position to take advantage of the recovery when it comes.
“We will be celebrating some of these success stories at the Archant Awards on January 22 in London but Archant’s success is not just about those who make it through to the awards and I would like to thank everyone for their efforts over the past 12 months.
“I am therefore delighted to be able to announce that a bonus of £200 will be paid in January to all employees who do not participate in a management bonus scheme. The bonus will be paid pro-rata to staff who work part-time and those who joined the company during the year,” said Adrian.
