THE CRUNCH
Some 1,271 Canva staff, 22 percent of the workforce, are affected by a restructuring that could mean losing their jobs, moving into new roles or being asked to relocate. CEO Melanie Perkins announced the changes in a message to staff on Wednesday, saying the Australian design software maker's growth rate has slowed for the first time in a decade and that "small changes won't be enough". She wrote that the company needs to "refound Canva", returning to small, empowered teams.
The reorganisation will merge the product, growth and platform groups into one "Product Org", which Perkins says will simplify layers and consolidate overlapping responsibilities. She did not say how many jobs will go, but argued the company has become inefficient. Notably, her message does not mention AI, instead citing new technology as changing what people can create and expect from products.
Canva will also move more product teams to its Sydney headquarters and ask some staff to relocate, with promised support for the move. Those leaving keep their company MacBooks and get a minimum of six months' salary, twelve months of health cover and a year of LinkedIn Premium, among other support. Perkins described herself as "deeply sorry" three times in the post.
Canva is a private company, so it is not required to publish financial results, though last year it disclosed 260 million monthly users and $3.5 billion in revenue. Its executives have previously said it turns a profit on a free-cash-flow basis. Perkins' post does not cite financial pressure. Along with Atlassian, Canva is among Australia's most celebrated technology firms, and both have now announced job cuts this year.