15 percent of Samsung’s management left the company late last year following its dismal smartphone sales, according to a new report from Korea-based news outlet Yonhap News.

The tech giant had 1,219 management staff on its books as of 2014’s Q3 — only for this number to fall by 177 people by the end of the year. 44 of the 177 people who resigned or were fired were from Samsung’s IT & Mobile Communications department.

Ouch!

There’s no doubt that 2014 was a near-disastrous one for Samsung, although details about just how bad it was continue to emerge. Not only did the company lose market share for three consecutive quarters thanks to the extra competition it faced, but it also wildly overestimated the appeal of its Galaxy S5 handset — resulting in unsold handsets piling up in its warehouses.

Making matters worse was the fact that all of this went down at a time when Apple was reporting record-shattering iPhone 6 and 6 Plus sales.

While we hadn’t previously heard just how many people had been on the chopping block at Samsung, it was known that three top executives in its mobile business had been dismissed as part of a large-scale reshuffling and downsizing effort.

Fortunately for Samsung fans, things now appear to be getting back on track. The reactions to the company’s new Galaxy S6 models have been extremely positive, while a separate report claims that Samsung dishes out some of the highest average salaries in South Korea. It is also expected to implement new flexible working schedules from the middle of this month.

Via: Digitimes