Hootsuite Cuts 30% of Staff in Pursuit of Financial Sustainability
Social media marketing company Hootsuite reduces its workforce by roughly 400 employees as its CEO aims to refocus the business. The Vancouver-based firm provides no details on severance or specific strategic changes.
Social media management company Hootsuite slashes nearly a third of its workforce as CEO Tom Keiser attempts to refocus the business on efficiency and financial sustainability. The company does not disclose the exact number of affected employees, but previous reports indicate a headcount of over 1,400, which suggests that approximately 400 workers lose their jobs. Hootsuite also declines to comment on whether it provides severance packages to the departing staff.
This major reduction occurs almost exactly a month after Hootsuite rolls out a fresh rebrand for its logo and its owl mascot, Owly. The Vancouver-based firm has raised over $300 million in capital from notable backers like Fidelity and Accel. Despite its past fundraising success and a rumored $1 billion valuation in 2014, PitchBook data shows the company's estimated value drops to around $750 million by 2019.
Hootsuite's history of workforce reductions now includes this current 30% cut and a previous 10% layoff in 2019, which happens amid reports that the company fails to sell itself. The CEO states the need to drive growth, but the company offers no specific details about what is actually changing in its business operations. This latest move joins a brutal, ongoing wave of layoffs across the broader technology sector.