Flexport confirms it will cut its global workforce by 20%
13 / 10 / 2023
Flexport has confirmed it will shrink its global workforce by “approximately 20%” as part of its plans to cut costs in a move that follows a series of changes at the company.
Recently back at the helm of Flexport, chief executive Ryan Petersen said in a blog post on October 12: “We will reduce the size of our global team by approximately 20% with the process starting tomorrow, Friday, October 13.”
He said that the redundancies are taking place in order to return the company to profitability, with an anticipation this could happen before the end of 2024.
“With more than $1bn in net cash, following this change, Flexport is now in a great position to take advantage of the opportunities in front of us to return to profitability as soon as the end of next year.”
In yesterday’s statement, Petersen did not provide any detail on how the layoffs will be broken down regionally, however, he indicated that staff from more than one region would be affected.
“Departure support for Flexporters will vary by geography,” he said.
Following the announcement, Flexport’s head of Europe Doug Brown said that around 14 people would be affected in the European operation.
“Flexport has undertaken a global restructuring, impacting approximately 20% of our global workforce,” said Brown.
“Although we’ve seen unprecedented growth in our tech division, which constitutes a significant part of our team, we found it essential to balance tech innovation with direct customer interaction in a challenging market. Flexport remains at the forefront of tech innovation in global freight forwarding and logistics.
“Our European operations saw a modest reduction of 14 people, and we thank the departing team members for their contributions to Flexport.
“Flexport has seen continued double-digit growth in Europe and we will continue to build upon our strong momentum to drive growth in the region. We aim to strengthen our presence in our largest markets, while also accelerating growth in our newer markets. With a robust roadmap of new or improved products set to launch, we are very excited about the future of Flexport Europe.
“Despite the restructuring, our dedication to client-centricity remains unchanged. These strategic adjustments underscore our promise to deliver unparalleled service and innovation to our partners.”
Earlier this month, media reports had suggested that Flexport could layoff as much as 30% of its workforce.
This isn’t the first time the forwarder has taken action to trim its staff numbers. In January it announced it would cut its workforce by 20% as it was overstaffed.
Yesterday’s staff announcement comes after a tumultuous few weeks for the freight forwarder.
In September, it was announced that ex-Amazon logistics leader Dave Clark would leave the role of chief executive to be replaced by the firm’s founder and former boss Petersen.
The following day Petersen withdrew job offers for more than 75 people that he said were given jobs during a “hiring freeze”.
Since then, chief financial officer Kenneth Wagers has reportedly also left the company.
After his exit from the company, Clark declared that Flexport is “facing serious internal and industry challenges”.
Flexport restructuring to have “minimal impact” on European employees
