Cisco to announce new job cuts

Cisco plans to announce a layoff that could affect thousands of employees, reports say Reuters.

The move marks the second wave of layoffs for the company in 2024 as it aims to shift its focus to higher-growth areas such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI).

According to some sources, the exact number of job cuts could be similar to or slightly higher than the 4,000 jobs that were eliminated in February 2024.

The job cut announcement is expected to coincide with Cisco’s fourth quarter results, possibly as early as August 15, 2024.

As of July 2023, Cisco’s workforce was about 84,900 – this figure does not take into account layoffs in early 2024.

Requests for comment from Cisco did not elicit a response, Reuters said.

Cisco, known for its routers and switches that facilitate Internet traffic, has faced demand and supply chain issues in its core business.

Those challenges have led the company to diversify, including the $28 billion acquisition of cybersecurity firm Splunk completed in March.

This strategic move aims to reduce Cisco’s reliance on equipment sales by improving its subscription services.

In its efforts to integrate AI into its product suite, Cisco in May reaffirmed its goal of securing $1 billion in AI product orders by 2025.

A $1 billion fund dedicated to AI startup investments was launched in June, with companies like Cohere, Mistral AI and Scale AI on the list.

Cisco pointed out that it has completed 20 acquisitions and investments focused on artificial intelligence in recent years.

The tech industry has seen widespread job cuts as companies try to balance substantial AI investments with cost cuts.

Layoffs.fyi data shows that more than 130,000 people have been laid off from 397 tech firms since the start of 2024.

In one notable example, Intel cut its workforce by more than 15 percent, equivalent to about 17,500 jobs, in an effort to revitalize its loss-making manufacturing division.

“Cisco to announce additional job cuts” was originally created and published by Verdict, a brand owned by GlobalData.

The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to constitute advice on which you should rely and we make no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied, as to its accuracy or completeness. You should obtain professional or specialist advice before taking or refraining from any action based on the content on our website.