Atlassian, an Australian software company, has laid off five percent of its global workforce, equivalent to around 350 employees. The company stated that it is refocusing on its cloud-based IT service management (ITSM) product, Jira Service Management.
The layoffs will reportedly impact employees across all of Atlassian’s locations, including its Sydney headquarters and offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Atlassian has stated that it will provide affected employees with “generous severance pay, extended healthcare coverage, and dedicated career services” to support them during their transition.
In a blog post, Atlassian’s Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Mike Cannon-Brookes, stated that the company has been investing heavily in cloud-based ITSM over the past few years and that it has seen strong growth in its Jira Service Management product. He also noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the shift towards cloud-based services, particularly in the ITSM space.
“While we’re confident this is the right path forward for Atlassian, it’s never easy to say goodbye to teammates,” Cannon-Brookes wrote. “We’re doing everything we can to support those affected and ensuring we take a compassionate approach to this process.”
Atlassian’s Jira Service Management product allows IT teams to manage and resolve incidents, problems, and changes across their organizations. The product is part of Atlassian’s larger Jira product suite, which includes project management and software development tools.
The company reported strong financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2021, with revenue of $501.2 million, up 29 percent year-over-year. Atlassian’s cloud-based products accounted for 72 percent of its total revenue during the quarter.
Atlassian’s decision to focus on its cloud-based ITSM product reflects a broader trend in the software industry towards cloud-based services. Many companies are looking to move their IT infrastructure and services to the cloud in order to increase flexibility, reduce costs, and improve scalability.
