Twilio Announces Restructuring and 17% Workforce Reduction
By Twilio, the US cloud communications company, has announced another major round of layoffs just five months after the last.[0] The company will be cutting about 17% of its workforce, which amounts to roughly 1,400 employees.[0] This comes just two days before the company reports its fourth quarter earnings.
Twilio is restructuring its business, forming two business units: Twilio Communications and Twilio Data & Applications.[1] The split is necessary because the two units are at different lifecycle stages and have different needs.[2] According to CEO Jeff Lawson, the Communications business needs to become more efficient, while the software business needs to accelerate its growth.[2]
The company will also be closing some offices over the next few months and cutting back on employee benefits, including book and wellness allowances and its Twilio Recharge four-week paid sabbatical.[3] Moreover, Lawson himself has taken a significant pay cut, reducing his base salary from $134,000 to $65,535.[4]
Speaking on the restructuring, Lawson said, “The weeks ahead will be about processing all this change and working together to acclimate to our new structure. While tremendously difficult, I believe these actions will put us on the right path for executing our strategy and creating an even stronger, more efficient, and more effective Twilio.”[5]
Twilio is not the only tech company to have experienced job losses.[0] According to Layoffs.fyi, 340 tech companies have let go of more than 100,000 people since the start of 2023.[6] By the end of 2022, nearly 160,000 jobs had been lost across more than 1,000 tech companies.[7]
0. “Twilio, a Maker of Customer Communication and Marketing Software, Said It Will Cut About … – Latest Tweet” LatestLY, 13 Feb. 2023, https://www.latestly.com/socially/business/twilio-a-maker-of-customer-communication-and-marketing-software-said-it-will-cut-about-latest-tweet-by-bloomberg-4837329.html
1. “Twilio to eliminate 17% job and close some offices” InfotechLead.com, 13 Feb. 2023, https://infotechlead.com/mobility/twilio-to-eliminate-17-job-and-close-some-offices-76859
2. “Twilio to cut 17% of its staff, the 2nd round of layoffs in 5 months” MarketWatch, 13 Feb. 2023, https://www.marketwatch.com/story/twilio-to-lay-off-17-of-its-employees-to-cut-costs-while-providing-upbeat-q4-guidance-1362a77
3. “Twilio Is Finally Getting Serious About Turning a Profit” The Motley Fool, 14 Feb. 2023, https://www.fool.com/investing/2023/02/14/twilio-is-finally-getting-serious-about-turning-a/
4. “Twilio gains 4% as it plans cutting 17% of staff, closing offices (NYSE:TWLO)” Seeking Alpha, 13 Feb. 2023, https://seekingalpha.com/news/3935223-twilio-gains-4-as-it-plans-cutting-17-of-staff-closing-offices
5. “Twilio to lay off 17% of workforce, restructure” UPI News, 13 Feb. 2023, https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2023/02/13/twilio-layoffs-restructure/5981676314332/
6. “Twilio announces fresh round of layoffs, impacting 17% of its workforce” Network World, 14 Feb. 2023, https://www.networkworld.com/article/3687739/twilio-announces-fresh-round-of-layoffs-impacting-17-of-its-workforce.html
7. “Twilio axes roughly 1 in 5 staff in fresh round of layoffs” The Register, 13 Feb. 2023, https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/13/twilio_trims_workforce/
