Sonos, the popular audio brand, is laying off 200 employees as part of a company-wide reorganization. CEO Tom Conrad informed employees about the layoffs in a call and later shared details in an email.
"I’ve made the very difficult decision to eliminate about 200 positions at our company," Conrad wrote. He acknowledged the impact of the layoffs and thanked the affected employees for their contributions. "There’s no way around the fact that this is a terrible outcome," he said, promising support for those impacted in the coming weeks and months.
Conrad said in the email to his employees that the company is restructuring to create "flatter, smaller, and more focused teams." Conrad admitted that Sonos had become burdened with excessive layers, making collaboration and decision-making difficult. "We’ve let too many projects run under a cloud of half-commitment. We’re going to fix this too," he stated.
The email also revealed that Sonos is restructuring its Product division. Instead of business units focused on individual product categories, the company will now have different groups for Hardware, Software, Design, Quality, and Operations. "With this simpler organization in place, cross-functional project teams will come together to improve our core experience and deliver new products," Conrad explained.
The employees, who are impacted, will get severance pay based on their tenure. Their RSUs or restricted stock units will vest until February 15. Those in the quarterly bonus plan can receive a Q1 bonus if earned. In the US, they will also have healthcare coverage during the severance period.
Conrad encouraged employees who remain at Sonos to reach out with any concerns. "Hit me on Slack or email any time," he said. He also offered to help laid-off employees with job introductions.
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