The micro blogging service that could is rumored to be laying off 300 people…
Twitter is one of the bastions of social media on the internet. When people say, “all the social things” or “social networking,” you normally think of two things – 1. Facebook (obviously); and 2. Twitter. To be very honest, I don’t think that social networking would be as big as it is if not for Twitter. Its quick little 140 character messages have truly made the entire social networking platform what it is today… at least I think so.
Over the past year, the company has gone through a number of interesting changes. Its founder, Jack Dorsey has returned to the company as CEO. He was ousted from the company in 2008; but has returned after a successful stint at Square as founder and CEO to retake the helm of the fledgling service he started. Dorsey was expected to turn things around for the company quickly; but unfortunately, things haven’t rebounded as Twitter would have liked.
When things like this happen, its not unusual for the rank and file to expect organizational changes. According to a report from Bloomberg, Twitter is expected to cut approximately 8% of their current workforce, or about 300 people. The company had a similar RIF (reduction in force) in late 2015 when Dorsey returned. This latest layoff would bring the RIF total to 16% since Dorsey’s return.
My guess is that the recently cooling rumors of a buyout are fueling this latest development, as there aren’t currently any active, interested suitors – which included Salesforce, Disney and Alphabet (Google’s parent company) – for the company. Twitter’s shares were down a total of 4.9% on Tuesday morning, 2016-10-25.