Australian staff at software company Citrix will be subject to a global restructure which aims to slash headcount by 10 per cent and cut expenses by US$50 million.
Australian staff at software company Citrix will be subject to a global restructure which aims to slash headcount by 10 per cent and cut expenses by US$50 million.
The restructuring will impact 10 per cent of our global workforce across all geographic locations and functions
Citrix Asia-Pac VP Rob Willis
The restructuring program, which will aim to cut its workforce by 10 per cent, was announced yesterday as the company reported revenues of US$1.58 billion for the financial year, up 14 per cent on the previous year's takings.
Citrix's Asia Pacific vice president, Rob Willis, would not disclose exact numbers, but said that the cuts would be applied globally.
"We cannot share with you the specific number, but what we can tell you is that the restructuring will impact 10 per cent of our global workforce across all geographic locations and functions," he told ZDNet.com.au by email. Citrix has 160 staff across Australia and New Zealand.
Globally, the job cuts are expected to save the company US$50 million in employee-related expenses; however, the cost of making those cuts is expected to reach US$23 million.
Some of Citrix's offices have also been earmarked for closure as part of the restructure, but the company has yet to determine which would close. Locally, Citrix operates in NSW, Queensland, Victoria, ACT and Western Australia. It also has two offices in New Zealand.
Willis declined to say whether any of these offices were likely candidates for closure. "We cannot give you specific details, but I can tell you that our restructuring is about aligning our people resources against our most strategic initiatives," he said.
"We are restructuring our workforce as part of a broad cost reduction plan that are fiscally necessary and operationally responsible which will allow us to operate profitably in the present global economic environment, and to emerge even stronger when the market begins to recover," he added. Willis highlighted virtualisation, software-as-a-service and cloud computing initiatives as areas of future potential for the company.
The company's fourth quarter revenues for the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region had decreased by 6 per cent when compared to the same period in 2007. In contrast, revenues from the Americas and EMEA regions grew of between 2 to 3 per cent.
Citrix also reported that product licence revenue had decreased by 9 per cent for the quarter, while online services revenue had grown 18 per cent. Licence update revenue had grown 13 per cent, and consulting and technical support revenues grew 13 per cent.
Citrix has zero job vacancies listed for its Australian and New Zealand operations. Across the Asia Pacific region it is looking to hire just 14 staff, with 13 in India and one in Singapore.
