In an effort to “promote in-person collaboration,” Snap, the parent company of the social media app Snapchat, announced on Monday that it would cut 528 employees globally, or 10% of its entire workforce. This suggests that as tech companies navigate the economic uncertainty thrown at them, the trend of tech layoffs observed in 2023 may continue.
The business, well-known for its photo-messaging app Snapchat, has struggled to compete with bigger rivals like Meta, which on Thursday declared its first dividend, and translate its appeal among younger users into consistent revenue growth. On Tuesday, Snap will release its results for the fourth quarter.
Since 2022, the company has gone through multiple rounds of layoffs; the most recent one took place in November and involved the reduction of a small number of product employees. August 2022 saw the company’s largest round of layoffs, reorganizing its business lines and resulting in a 20% staff reduction.
In order to foster in-person collaboration and lessen hierarchy, we are restructuring our team. We are committed to helping our team members who are leaving,” a Snap representative was quoted by CNBC as saying.
“In order to best position our business to execute on our highest priorities and to ensure we have the capacity to invest incrementally to support our growth over time, we have made the difficult decision to restructure our team,” Snap said.
On Monday, Snap shares dropped 4% to $16.38.
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week about the negative effects of their platforms on young people, along with a number of other social media executives.
Snap is the most recent tech company to implement layoffs in 2024. In January alone, nearly 24,000 tech workers lost their jobs. Two identity and cybersecurity specialists, Zoom and Okta, have already let go of staff members this month.
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