BlackBerry has cut an unspecified number of employees at two facilities. The company confirmed that it let employees go at its Waterloo headquarters, as well as at a plant in Sunrise, Fla.
“As BlackBerry continues to execute its turnaround plan, we remain focused on driving efficiencies across our global workforce,” said the company in a statement. “This means finding new ways to enable us to capitalize on growth opportunities, while driving toward sustainable profitability across all parts of our business. As a result, a small number of employees have been impacted. It also means that BlackBerry is actively recruiting in those areas of our business that will drive growth.”
BlackBerry CEO John Chen has focused on BlackBerry’s core BES communications and device management business while winding down its phone business. Chen recently said BlackBerry will release as few as one or two new handsets per year if it stays in the hardware game.
Chen has been vocal about killing off its smartphone business entirely if it can’t turn a profit. BlackBerry didn’t say what areas of the company were affected by today’s job cuts.
