Zoom reducing headcount by 1,300
The total is about 15% of its workforce that greatly increased during the pandemic
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Zoom is reducing its headcount by 15%.
The layoffs will affect about 1,300 of Zoom’s employees, CEO Eric Yuan said Tuesday in a blog post on the video communication company’s website. They touch "each organization across Zoom."
Hundreds of media industry staffers were laid off this week during a brutal period that saw Warner Bros. Discovery, Gannett and others slash headcount as economic uncertainty plagues news organizations. (Getty / Getty Images)
ZOOM CEO ERIC YUAN DISCUSSES HYBRID WORK DURING BOXWORKS PANEL
Yuan noted Zoom "needed to staff up rapidly to support the quick rise of users on our platform and their evolving needs" during the COVID-19 pandemic. The company's size tripled within two years, he said.
The company reported having over 8,400 full-time employees at the end of October, according to its most recent quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Over shoulder view of female worker have webcam digital virtual conference with diverse multiethnic colleagues. Downdetector, which reports service outages, said reports of issues with the digital video conference service skyrocketed within the past (istock / iStock)
Zoom "didn't take as much time as we should have to thoroughly analyze our teams or assess if we were growing sustainably, toward the highest priorities," Yuan continued.
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"As the world transitions to life post-pandemic, we are seeing that people and businesses continue to rely on Zoom," he said. "But the uncertainty of the global economy, and its effect on our customers, means we need to take a hard – yet important – look inward to reset ourselves so we can weather the economic environment, deliver for our customers and achieve Zoom’s long-term vision."
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The CEO took accountability for "these mistakes and the actions we take today."
Yuan said his pay will see a 98% cut for the coming fiscal year. He will not receive the corporate bonus he was slated to get for fiscal 2023, he added.
Zoom executives will also take base salary cuts – 20% – for the upcoming year and forego their fiscal 2023 bonuses, according to Yuan’s blog post.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 25: Eric Yuan speaks onstage during the Dropbox Work In Progress Conference at Pier 48 on September 25, 2019 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Dropbox)
Laid off U.S. employees at Zoom were informed Tuesday, while non-U.S. workers "will be notified following local requirements," he said.
Support they will have access to includes "up to 16 weeks’ salary and healthcare coverage" and "outplacement services that include 1:1 coaching, workshops, networking groups, and more," according to his post. They will also get their "earned FY’23 bonus" and restricted stock unit and stock option vesting for a certain time period.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZM | ZOOM VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS INC. | 81.20 | +2.34 | +2.97% |
"My commitment to you is that we will make sure the changes we are making to our team today are not made in vain," Yuan wrote at the end of the blog post. "We will learn from the past to set ourselves up for future success, and redouble our efforts to help evolve Zoom to tomorrow."