Bob Reynolds has sharpened his ax. Boston-based Putnam Investments [profile] will lay off 78 Boston area employees or 4.4 percent of its workforce.

The reductions will be from the firm's operations staff.

The layoffs are a reaction to last year's volatile financial markets. This is the fourth layoff the Reynolds' team has made since 2008, reports Beth Healy of the Boston Globe. Since Reynolds took over as CEO in July 2008, Putnam has hired 500 people but has laid off 489 others.

Spokesman Jon Goldstein stated that the job cuts will be done "as part of an effort to realign corporate resources." Goldstein added that the company still focuses its resources into "high-potential components of its business" which include investment professionals, retirement products and sales staff.

Putnam saw its AUM fall to $117 billion from $121 billion over the course of 2011.  

Edited by: HFD


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