Ex-Madison editor Lizzie Renkert: Being cast aside by Bauer felt like death

if by “working hard” as an editor bellies the errors in this article then I’m all for sacking editors without notice…

Equating redundancy to death proves she has never been close someone dying.

That’s life. Best advice is to stop mourning what obviously wasn’t there – a symbiotic relationship of trust between employer and employee – and start looking for a new job pronto. The longer you’re unemployed, the harder it is to find work.
Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Realise you were lucky to have had a rewarding job for as long as you did. Be grateful and stop the bs about how hard you worked, and how your employer somehow owed you something for it. We all work hard in media and we always did.

If the recent rounds of redundancies across the media (particularly publishing) has shown anything, it’s that no position is assured, and no employee, no matter how long-serving and hard-working, is indispensable.

While you have to sympathise with Ms Renkert, what’s happened to her is nowhere near a unique set of circumstances. It is guaranteed that anyone working in a position such as hers (or any major role in a publication company) is going to have an impossibly strong, almost reckless, work ethic. Any other way would be sub-par.

Roles are made redundant, not people. So goes the HR spiel, anyway.

That doesn’t make it sting any less.. But ultimately, Renkert is one of thousands retrenched every year. Many with far longer service than her.

The difference is, she was a minor media personality, so mildly interesting to listen to. Lucky her.

Obligatory public service link – http://www.ruokday.com.au/reso.....k-at-work/

I worked on a weekly tabloid magazine for two years recently and saw first-hand the ridiculous pressure put on staff (especially the editor/deputy) and responsibility they took on for each issue’s sales. We often talked about how insane it was, in a time of huge global changes in media consumption habits, for those individuals to expect to reverse those trends and deliver positive growth. Knowing what you can and can’t control and not losing sight of that is nearly impossible in our industry right now I think, and I don’t see the roller coaster stopping any time soon. I wish you all the best Lizzie, and remember that you are the only person who can put yourself, your mental and physical health first. Very few companies will say no if you volunteer to compromise those for the sake of profits.

I feel for Renkert… but that the whole point of redundancy is that no matter how hard you’ve worked there’s no place for you.

Anyone who rates themselves as an exemplary employee is bound to be surprised when that are made redundant.

As Buddha says: “No matter how hard the past you can always begin again.” Translation: get over it, move on, you ain’t special, everyone works hard and gets the arse. And whatever you do, don’t get fixated by the past….

This woman so utterly, utterly identified by her work that when it was taken away from her she became totally desperate and lost. There’s a very real lesson there for all of us, really. It’s all VERY fleeting and you need to prepare yourself for the end….

Welcome to publishing in 2013 …

Anyone who believes that their job is 100% secure simply because they have a good track record is delusional. Companies are concerned about the welfare of the company. Thinking otherwise is naive.

Crikey, can’t this woman express her pain about losing her job without being vilified?

@jarrah comment 1 troll:

You mean belies not bellies? No editorship for you!

@J comment 2 troll

Oh please. She means it was upsetting not an actual death.

Don’t be sad it’s over, be glad it happened (and join with the 1000s of other journalists and editors who’ve been made redundant over the past few years.)

I read your “story in the Adelaide Sunday Mail to-night…………….you’re not alone.

Have just read other comments on this site to-night, which amaze me ! A total lack of compassion and, if the truth be known, they all sound bitter. YOU went out on a lonely place and stated how it is. In essence, we are all merely an employee number etched on our chests………………the days of old have well and truly passed when an employer actually treasured your input. Without OUR input etc., the business would have died. WE, who are on the frontline, make and break the business !!

Take great care, Lizzie…………..you sound and look brilliant. Your time will come again and, yes, your daughter will love, treasure and respect you……………

I have to say I am also totally amazed and disgusted by some of the comments written here. What kind of industry do we work in when this is how some people treat others when they are down, by giving them a kick. I applaud Lizze for standing up and sharing her story and by doing so showing everyone that she is not a number. Lizzie you are an inspiration to me.

I think Lizzie’s article equates to throwing a temper tantrum of not being embraced and mollycoddled after her redundancy. This just proves what an ego these editors have. People are made redundant all the time, many of which who have worked much harder and for a lot longer than her. Lizzie should be thankful for having held the position for so long and that she wasn’t fired for some poor readership numbers, or another crappy excuse.

Business in every industry is cut throat and loyalty is no longer valued. If you can’t hack it, go start something for yourself. And NO, that does not mean start a blog (like every “freelancer” of 2013).

“I honestly didn’t think any company would ever choose to get rid of me because I naively believed hard work and always doing the right thing by the company would prevail. I was wrong.”

A good lesson for you to learn, Lizzie.

Hi Lizzie, You’re very welcome to join Publishers Australia as a Freelancer member whilst you’re looking for a new position. We do our best to look after local magazine talent. You’ll get a website listing, access to a great network, newsletters, discounted events tickets and first dibs at member vacancies.

As some wise person said, you can love your work but it won’t love you back. Sometimes these lessons are hard to learn but in the end work out the best for us in the long run. It’s great that she felt able to share what she went through. It is absolutely devasting when your work becomes so much of your life that it pretty much becomes your identity – and then to have that ripped away from you would leave you feeling rudderless.

She’s obviously committed and talented, so good time to take a break and come back with your own business so you don’t answer to other people, who at the end of the day, don’t really care about you.

Publicly slagging off an ex-employer….not classy

Oh, poor lass.
I have been an editor on national magazines for the past 15 years, with a break as a freelancer for three years, a few years ago. I’ve piloted a cast iron hang glider of a magazine into the turf, and edited big winners.
Editing a major player in the tough Ausie market is all-encompassing. You didn’t get time to exercise? Oh, dear. You are slowly putting yourself together again? You dear, brave soul. Berets doffed to that. Goodness me.
It’s a big gig, this editing caper, and it sorts the men from the boys and the girls from the women. Get used to it.

Sadly, that’s publishing… They blow smoke up your arse and promise you the world at every annual review and then they unceremoniously dump you. Best thing you can do is take heed of the signs — constant erosion of budgets down to near zero — and jump before you’re pushed.

For those of you slagging Lizzie off or scoffing at her, I highly recommend you read her piece in full. This story is sensationalising what she wrote and making out like she’s trying to slam Bauer. Not the case. Instead the article goes through what it felt like to be made redundant despite being a model employee, how she initially felt about it, what she’s done to pick up the pieces, what she’s learned from it, and how she’s moving forward. It was actually incredibly inspirational and this article has done it no justice at all.

I feel for her pain as this is a tough period, but really Lizzie, you are very lucky not to have had to deal with the tough reality of being made redundant prior to this. Surely you are aware that is an element of the publishing business. Magazines come and go every year – what made you think you were immune?

I had magazines collapse on me early in my career in 1990, 1993 and 1998. Each time, all of us got up and dusted ourselves off and kept going. I never had the chance to writing an editorial about it as I was too busy applying for new work and pitching ideas to editors for freelance work. And frankly, so many of us had been made redundant that no one wanted to know about it in a long editorial.

So good luck to you and hang in there. But the lesson here is never identify yourself by your job, no matter how devoted and how hard you work. Once the mag is gone, you have to move onto the next gig.

Check the history pages about an ed from the early 2000s who was celebrated as Magazine Editor of the Year and then within 18 months, after the collapse of two mags, was working on a suburban paper. Nothing wrong with that, but it certainly marked a fall from her heady days as well.

Lizzie,

Congratulations on having the guts to put yourself out there on this issue …. I too find it unbelievable that people would vilify Lizzie on this ,,,, she is being honest, not asking for anything, just being human ….. Yep, life is a lesson, she is not naive, she is just saying the way it is for her and that is her right to freedom of speech , just as freedom of speech allows people to criticise with the safety of the internet and non disclosure of who you are ….

Wish you well Lizzie

I don’t think she understands what a redundancy is.

It is not a performance based termination

and here’s the link to the full article – http://www.dailytelegraph.com......6671959577

I worked with Lizzie at marie claire, and wrote for her at Madison. She is an exceptionally talented editor and a very decent woman; honest, fair and trustworthy. She deserves her great reputation in the media because she worked for it and earned it. Her pain at being made redundant is heartfelt. Good luck, Miss Lizzie.

Really people, can you not let someone who has experienced what all of us would admit is a very horrible life event share her view without condeming her for sharing her personal experience. Reading the comments attached to articles likes this makes me wonder what sort of industry I work in. What happened to ‘if you dont have anything nice to say, dont say anything’.

People in Media:

You are a cruel and nasty lot.

I have almost stopped subscribing to Mumbrella due to the constant vitriol I read in users comments.

The humanity appears to have left our industry some time ago.

Good luck Lizzie.

In media more than most currently, loyalty is word destined for extinction.

I feel for the lady concerned and know that good things will come. But it is a leson we all need to learn, we are nothing more than tools for profit, once we dont provide it, or once a better alternative arrives we are little more than a commodore 64.

Its time for employees to recognise where we sit in the greater scheme, perhaps time to recognise and value the unions of the past, but most importantly, dont base your value on your job.. and certainly dont expect your employer to look after you.

I think it’s brave to open up to your peers like this.
And it makes for refreshing reading especially if you’ve ever suffered in this way yourself.

Disappointed to see so many bitter, cynical comments here.

I work closely with editors in fashion publishing and while it remains that there is still some sort of grand illusion about these women with their ‘fabulous’ lifestyles and ‘princess complexes’, this is clearly not the case. I have seen women promoted to the gilded editor’s chair, and within months the gorgeous pink glow has fallen from their faces. In the place of enthused, bright young women are these gaunt, exhausted creatures. I’ve seen the role of fashion and lifestyle editor for more than we would have it.. a commitment to being a representation of the magazine brand (the intelligent and style-savvy female who balances motherhood and a successful career), to staying ahead of the fashion curve, to ‘being an industry gatekeeper’ but also carrying responsibility for driving innovation and success in a business in what is perceived to be a struggling industry-and on diminishing budgets.

I sympathise.

As a previous ACP and Fairfax editor I can say that this is nothing new, but you have to weigh up the amazingly charmed life of a glam mag editor – with all its freebies and other enviable consolations – against the lack of security. Lizzie was expressing some personal, understandable feelings, and I applaud that but try being a car assembly plant worker for a few days, you might realise how blessed you are/were.

Part of the Game – that is the main point of Lizzie’s piece. That she over-identified with her job and she’s now happier with more balanced life and is moving forward with her life. I’d read her actual article before commenting on it. This article here has just picked the only negative parts from it to print. The title of her piece is actually:

“Former Madison magazine editor Lizzie Renkert says losing her job has made her life better”

She says things like:

“I’ve learnt invaluable lessons such as the importance of empathy and family and friends, as well as discovering my own strengths and inner resilience.

I gave too much of myself to my job and I cared too much about the false sense of self it bestowed on me. I gave up valuable time with the people I love and who love me and made the decision to return to work when my daughter was only five months old as I believed the magazine needed me… I miss my job and I miss my team, but I don’t miss that level of pressure.”

“When you roll up your sleeves and take the pragmatic approach, it’s heartening to find the situation is less gloomy and work is coming my way.

Many would baulk at the very public nature of my redundancy, but I found comfort in it. People I hadn’t heard from in 20 years came out of the woodwork to lend their support. I was humbled by the hundreds of emails, Facebook posts and tweets, received from friends, new and old, colleagues, ex and current, readers and clients. Their positive messages restored my faith in humanity.”

“Even though I’m not employed full-time, exciting opportunities are constantly arising that I never dreamt of. I now have a regular fashion segment on Channel 9’s Mornings show and I’m hosting luxury brand events, among other things.

The realisation that people still wanted me, without the glossy magazine behind me, has been reassuring.

I’ve been working in media since I was 19 years old. I’m 37 now and I’ll most probably work into my sixties. So I have chosen to view this time as a positive – time to explore new opportunities, time to get fit and healthy, time to spend with my family, time to reflect. I need to learn how to get that elusive balance right, so that the next time I land a big job, I will have a grasp on what balance and perspective can bring to the table.

I will forever be grateful for having the opportunity to edit a magazine I felt so passionate about, and to work with a group of men and women who inspired me.”

“I will never again let myself feel bad about showing emotion, passion and empathy in the workplace, which I did in spades. This is what women should bring to the table and it deserves to be celebrated.

I hope my nearly two-year-old daughter, when she’s old enough to understand this turbulent time in my life, will be proud of her mum.

After all, it’s how you deal with difficult situations that show your true character.”

Agree with Claire. Constructive comments much more interesting to read than vitriol. Perhaps it’s because the Mumbrella readers are mainly ad-land people who have had the humanity sucked out of them? Not a particularly interesting article by Mumbrella anyway – of course she is upset that she has lost her job. Maybe a bit of a reality check for her; but certainly not news to the rest of us out here in “the real world”. A more interesting piece would have discussed the issue behind it: a shrinking media; the impact on democracy etc etc… though perhaps a fashion mag is not a great case study…

I also agree with Claire, the comments made by Mumbrella readers on the whole are consistently bitter, negative and just down right evil and bitchy for no good reason.

The article clearly focussed on how something positive came out of something so unexpected in her career and was a well written, honest and heart felt piece that many people appreciated and enjoyed reading.

Well done Lizzie, your a fabulous woman please ignore some of the small mindedness being demonstrated in some of these reader comments

You are well and truly better than it all !

When I read Lizzie’s story in the Sunday Telegraph yesterday, I saw no slagging off of her former employer intended at all, just an open and honest account of her complete devastation when, despite all her hard work and personal sacrifice over many years, she was told that the magazine she had poured her heart and soul into would be closing and she and her closeknit team would soon be losing jobs they loved and were passionate about. She knew it was a business decision and Lizzie and the entire Madison team handled themselves very graciously as they put together their final issue.
Redundancy is a bitch. No matter how many times you try and rationalise it , it is still a huge blow personally when it happens. Anyone who has been made redundant from a job they loved and gave their all to will tell you what a blow it was to them and how deeply it impacted them at the time.
You worry about your team members finding jobs, you worry if you’ll find another job yourself that you love as much.. you wonder what to do with yourself each day when you have never been out of work in your life before. If you’re lucky it leads to new opportunities you would never have been open to had you not been forced to look for alternative employment. And many times to a much better job than you had before. But hindsight is a wonderful thing.
This was simply someone high profile sharing the emotional roller coaster she has been on for the past few months and what she has discovered about herself as a result, not a bitter twisted former employee bagging out her past employer. I’m not surprised Bauer haven’t commented. They know this has been taken out of context and is a beat up of the highest order. Shame on you!

Lizzie wrote an opinion piece with a mainstream readership in mind. A bit touchy-feely and personal – nothing wrong with that. I’m sure if she had been asked to write a column for Mumbrella, she would have used a different tone. Phrases like “prestigious editorship” and comments about working through her lunch were never going to win her points with Mumbrella’s keyboard warriors, but they seem fine for a Telegraph reader.

I’m not overly impressed with Mumbrella for her treatment. But the real lesson here is that once you put a story out there in the big scary media, you no longer control it. Lizzie must’ve known this. But should she have also pre-empted how others might spin “the story about the story”?

Probably.

I do worry about all the anonymous commenters who are so happy to jump on a forum and drag someone down. The lack of empathy is startling.

Good on you Lizzie to come out with your story. I was made redundant last year from a role in TV I loved and worked my butt off for many years. I felt exactly the same when I was let go – like a part of me had died. It did feel like a break up/ divorce. I can really connect with everything you said in the article. Thanks for sharing.

Turn this “kind of death” into a little death or La Petite Mort.

Did you not make friends during your years at the top? Did you learn nothing?I can hardly imagine so. Strike out on your own, write publish or do something completely unrelated. Realise your other self and fly about in your own creative space.

When I worked full time in the theatre, I used to experience this “kind of death” every time a play season came to an end. I would walk out on the bare stage and look into the empty auditorium with a sad feeling of great loss. There is always another production, another life, waiting to be born, go look for it and if it is not there, then help to create one.

It’s a good reminder to others that having a personal brand (and a personal life) always prevails over taking on the identity of your job or company. As one of the comments above said, your company will never love you back no matter how hard you try. It’s a good lesson that your professional value should be marketed over, above and independently of your identity as an employee.

Ugh. One more time. READ THE FULL PIECE BEFORE COMMENTING!! I lot of this sage advice and withering commentary is completely ridiculous because it is addressing a few select quotes from her piece, and not the piece as a whole. You’d think people in media would recognise selective editing when they saw it!! Seriously, her piece has been so incredibly misrepresented by Mumbrella. Actually read it and then make your commentary. I think you’ll find it is quite different to your assumptions.

Commenting on mumbrella is like falling into a nest of vipers. Thanks to those who called for more kindness and humanity from those who comment. To the others: do you never think about how your vitriol may be received by a human? Or ro you just not care?

It is a heartfelt and honest piece with lessons for us all, particularly in the current media climate. Lizzie is a courageous, hard-working, generous and kind editor who looked after her staff and was devastated at losing the magazine she loved. Any of you would be lucky to work for an editor like her.

By about 35 you’re dead in media.

Thanks Susi for posting the link to the full article. Mumbrella’s selective editing has misrepresented the broader premise of Lizzie’s article and the vitriolic response by Mumbrella readers is disgraceful.

Give the girl a break.

As someone who worked with Lizzie (and many other magazine editors from ACP), it was always apparent that if you wanted to succeed in those roles then you had to forsake your personal life. This was the case regardless of whether you worked in motoring or fashion; travel or family mags.

Lizzie has now had the horrible experience of redundancy to make her realise how fruitless that personal sacrifice actually is. Her full article makes this very clear and it is written honestly and compassionately.

I always enjoyed working with Lizzie. She was a good egg in a tough and often painfully superficial business. I always thought she had great integrity, intelligence and talent. Best of luck to you Lizzie. Although I do hope you are not reading these ridiculous comments!

Nice try, Tim!
This is the first time I have come to this blog because I had heard about the full article from a friend but was directed to this site instead. This article takes a pretty different tone to the one I actually wanted to read, so good on you for taking things out of context. Such a shame that talented editors are being replaced online by substandard blogs..

The impression I’m getting from a lot of the interviews being done on journalists/ editors that have been sacked over the last 12 months is that they feel too secure in their poisition only to finally be finally be woken up by reality. It’s like they were walking around with blinkers on.

Sorry Tim, but this article blatantly misrepresents her article as a whole. This is a classic example of only using select quotes, out of context, to create the picture you want, rather than the one the author of the piece was trying to convey. Yes, you can choose to look at one aspect of her article that interests you to report on; but in that case you should also reference the overall tone and perspective of the piece in order to give your readers a true idea of what the piece was about and in order to provide CONTEXT. Yes she did reference feeling a bit let down by her employer, but she didn’t so much blame them for that as explain how she felt about it and her own incorrect assumptions in a greater narrative of re-ordering her life and starting again. As someone once made redundant myself (after 2 weeks of celebrations of my team’s record-breaking sales record), I can say that this is spot-on and exactly how most people feel when made redundant in these sorts of circumstances. You tried to make her piece look like a bitter slam-job of her old employer and that is far from what it was. Selective editing perfectly describes what you’ve done here.

There is a good case to be made against media companies such as Bauer. Even though it is generally accepted that working in publishing can be insecure and thankless, ti doesn’t make chucking out good staff a sensible, and – dare I use the word – ‘moral’ thing to do.
All that experience could then be turned into added value staff.
In turn, their new stables could be in hands of solid talent.
Makes sense… oh not that old chesnut…