More job cuts at Hewlett-Packard as results disappoint

  • 10 years ago
Hewlett-Packard is to cut between 11,000 and 16,000 more people from its workforce in different countries and business areas.

The move is a major ramp-up of chief executive Meg Whitman’s long running overhaul as she tried to turn around the personal computer maker and restore it to growth.

HP’s sprawling global operations employ more than 250,000 people; the restructuring is reducing that by a total of at least 50,000.

A shrinking personal computer market and weak corporate spending on technology mean HP just posted a disappointing one percent drop in quarterly revenue.

CEO Whitman said the turnaround remained on track and her raised target reflected how HP continued to find areas to streamline across its broad portfolio, which encompasses computing, networking, storage and software.

But some analysts wondered whether it signaled a worsening outlook for the coming year, or if more jobs may be cut.

“The rationale makes sense,” said RBC analyst Amit Daryanani. But “you do worry if there’s a finality to this process, or if it’s an ongoing thing that may affect morale at the end of the day. So far the trend has been worrisome.”

The Silicon Valley company is trying to reduce its reliance on PCs and move toward computing equipment and networking gear for enterprises.

with Reuters

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