Cognizant to Lay Off 3,500 Workers and Close Some Offices to Reduce Costs

• ByStartupStory     |    May 5, 2023

Cognizant is reportedly set to lay off 3,500 employees as part of a cost-cutting initiative, according to a Moneycontrol report. The company’s CEO, Ravi Kumar S, announced plans to reduce costs by letting go of thousands of workers, as well as giving up 11 million sq ft of office space. Cognizant has also projected a decline in revenues for 2023, with margins at 14.6%, among the lowest in the industry, the report noted.

In an effort to revamp the company and compete with major rivals like Accenture, Infosys, and TCS, Cognizant CEO Ravi Kumar S has announced measures including the layoff of 3,500 employees and a reduction in office space, according to a report by Moneycontrol. It is currently unclear how many of the company’s employees in India will be affected by the decision.

According to a report, Ravi Kumar S, who took over as the CEO of Cognizant in January 2023, has announced layoffs and office space reduction to improve the company’s financial situation amid stiff competition from other IT firms. Kumar S is a former president of Infosys. The former CEO of Cognizant, Brian Humphries, was unexpectedly terminated, and the company stated that he was fired without any specific reason in its 2023 proxy statement.

“In preparing for 2023, however, the Board recognised the need for Cognizant to progress faster, increase its commercial momentum and accelerate revenue growth. We believed that doing so required a CEO transition,” Stephen J Rohleder, the Chairman of the Cognizant board had said in a statement, as reported by Moneycontrol.

According to the CEO’s message to shareholders, Cognizant, which has a significant presence in India despite being a US-based company, plans to further capitalise on the country’s IT talent pool. CEO Ravi Kumar S expressed his belief that India will become the world’s technology talent hub in the next decade, owing to its demographic profile and digital talent pool that surpasses that of any other nation. Cognizant intends to increase recruitment efforts not only in major cities but also in midsize metropolitan areas, leveraging the company’s well-known brand on college campuses throughout India.

In recent times, several technology companies, including Amazon, Google, IBM, Infosys, Meta, Twitter, Wipro, and Cognizant, have announced layoffs, leading to a highly competitive job market for those who have been let go. The tech industry is facing a difficult time, and LinkedIn, a popular job-search platform, is filled with stories of people looking for new opportunities after losing their jobs due to mass layoffs in the industry.

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