Thoughtworks cuts 100 Australian staff

The global tech firm has swung the axe on its local arm, laying off about a quarter of its workforce.

Software consultancy firm Thoughtworks has laid off around 100 local staff, The Australian has learned, as part of a restructure affecting about 4 per cent of the company’s global headcount.

In a letter to affected Australian staff, seen by The Australian, the company’s regional boss Kristan Vingrys said that Thoughtworks had “not seen the improvement we need” in the past six months and needed to shed staff in its professional services and operations divisions as a result.

It’s understood that many of the laid off Australian staff were recent graduates. The cuts are thought to affect about a quarter of the company’s local workforce.

“Unfortunately, given the changes of our operational requirements, your job is one of those that we believe are no longer required for the business, and we are considering making your job redundant,” the letter reads.

“Based on the information we have now, we cannot find a suitable redeployment opportunity for you, but will discuss this further with you during a consultation meeting.

“We appreciate this is likely to be an upsetting and difficult time and we are looking to support you as much as we can through this process.

“This was not an easy decision to make and this is not a reflection of the work undertaken by impacted Thoughtworkers or them as individuals. It is an action we need to take to build a more resilient business in which our workforce is aligned with our client’s needs and our operation runs more efficiently.”

Thoughtworks CEO Guo Xiao. Source: Supplied.

Thoughtworks, which provides technology consulting services, has offices in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, and has over 12,500 employees across 18 countries globally. Its local clients include NAB, Zip, Suncorp and Qantas.

The company’s head of global public relations Linda Horiuchi confirmed the cuts in a statement.

“We confirm that we have made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce by about four per cent globally,” she said.

“We did not make this decision lightly and regret that we had to say goodbye to some talented and passionate Thoughtworkers.

“These changes were necessary to support the future growth of our business.”

The consultancy, which listed on the Nasdaq in 2021 through an initial public offering that raised $1.1bn, has joined a growing list of technology companies looking to cut costs and headcount amid a likely economic downturn.

In its latest earnings report earlier this week the company said it forecast a first-quarter revenue decline of between 5 per cent to 5.5 per cent, compared to Refinitiv analyst expectations of a 2.3 per cent decline. Its shares are down 62.5 per cent over the past year.

In 2022 the company’s Australian arm was named a ‘Great Place to Work’ for the second year in a row.

“To be featured not once, but twice in a row among Australia’s best workplaces is a wonderful recognition,” Mr Vingrys said in a press release announcing the award.

“Our purpose centres on empowering the world through a collaborative culture and technology excellence. It’s our extraordinary people who sit at the core of our success and we aim to foster a genuine sense of belonging that enables us to grow and evolve together, as we meet every new challenge.”