NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) - Hewlett Packard Enterprise is planning to cut about 10 per cent of its staff, or at least 5,000 workers, according to people familiar with the matter, part of a broader effort to pare expenses as competition mounts.
The reductions are expected to start before the end of the year, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. The cuts at the company, which has about 50,000 workers, are likely to affect workers in the US and abroad, including managers, the people said. A Hewlett Packard Enterprise representative didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
Chief executive officer Meg Whitman has been jettisoning divisions since 2015, including personal computers, printers, business services and key software units. The moves are all part of an effort to make HPE more responsive to a changing industry that's under pressure from cloud providers such as Amazon.com and Alphabet's Google.
On a call with analysts earlier this month, Whitman said the company is benefiting from growing demand across key areas of the business. At the same time, she said she's pushing to cut "layers" in the organization and become more efficient.
"With fewer lines of business and clear strategic priorities, we have the opportunity to create an internal structure and operating model that is simpler, nimbler and faster," she said.
On the same call, chief financial officer Tim Stonesifer said the company is targeting US$1.5 billion in savings over a three-year period.
In Singapore, Hewlett Packard Enterprise has about about 1,600 employees, according to figures given by Ms Whitman in May last year on the opening of the company's new Asia Pacific and Japan headquarters building in the city-state.
The Straits Times has contacted the Singapore office on the jobs cuts' media report and is awaiting its response.
The new regional HQ brought together all of the company's various facilities in Singapore - including R&D (research and development), supply chain and logistics, marketing and sales offices, an Innovation Centre and a 10,677 square foot Customer Experience Centre.
The company also said then that its new HQ would invest some US$140 million over the next five years, including including US$16 million to nurture promising local startups in collaboration with the Singapore Economic Development Board.
With additional information from The Straits Times
