SUSE plans to cut roughly 10% of its global workforce, according to an internal memo from CEO Dirk-Peter van Leeuwen that The Register reported on November 2. The memo went to SUSE’s roughly 1,900 employees on Monday.
What the memo says
Van Leeuwen called the cuts painful but necessary and pinned them on how automation and AI are changing the way software companies work. He wrote that SUSE’s current organizational design and cost base “will not carry us forward successfully,” that some roles are needed far less than before, and that the company is shifting investment toward its highest-priority areas. He also told staff the cuts reflect changing needs, not their talent or commitment.
Timeline
- Affected employees will be told by November 4.
- Employee representatives are to be nominated the following day, and one-to-one meetings start early next week.
- The rest of the company will see the fiscal 2027 strategy on November 16.
The memo didn’t say which roles are affected.
Background
The Register reported in September that SUSE had been offering long-time staff voluntary separation. SUSE is owned by Swedish private equity firm EQT, which bought it from Micro Focus in 2018, listed it in Frankfurt in 2021 and took it private again in 2023. EQT was reported in March to be weighing a sale of the company.
Source: The Register.