Report: Snap Lays Off 20 Employees in Product Management

Snap, the social messaging company, reportedly conducted a small round of layoffs as part of a reorganization aimed at streamlining its operations.

Nearly 20 employees holding product management titles were laid off, CNBC reported Wednesday (Nov. 8), citing a statement from Snap. The company said that these layoffs were not specific to any particular product and were instead part of their efforts to increase decision-making speed and reduce overhead, per the report. 

Snap did not immediately reply to PYMNTS’ request for comment.

The decision to conduct these layoffs comes on the heels of Snap’s third-quarter earnings report, in which the company reported a 5% year-over-year growth in overall sales, reaching $1.19 billion, according to the report. This figure surpassed analyst expectations.

However, like its larger rival Meta, Snap also warned investors about the impact of the ongoing crisis in the Middle East on advertising, the report said. Snap reported observing some recent pauses in advertising due to the conflict and, as a result, decided not to provide official guidance “due to the unpredictable nature of war.”

This is not the first time Snap has implemented layoffs, per the report. In the summer of 2022, the company announced plans to lay off 20% of its workforce, which at that time consisted of over 6,000 employees. Currently, Snap employs approximately 5,000 individuals.

At that time, Snap implemented layoffs, reassessed the priority of various business initiatives and restructured its executive team as it grappled with the effects of an industrywide advertising downturn and a broader economic slowdown. 

Months later, in April, the company reported its first-ever quarterly decline in revenue, a 7% drop to $988.6 million for the first quarter of 2023, as opposed to the $1 billion it had earned during the same period the previous year. This report reflected the impact of brands reducing their ad spending on its platform.

The report of Snap’s latest layoffs comes a day after BigCommerce announced a restructuring that will impact 7% of its workforce. The firm said that it expects the “headwinds” plaguing its industry to persist into 2024 and that it is restructuring to maintain growth and improve its go-to-market approach.

Five days before that, on Friday (Nov. 3), shipping company Maersk said it was eliminating another 3,500 positions after having reduced its headcount by 6,500 throughout the year. The company said it has experienced a drop in revenue due to lower freight rates and volumes.