Fresh Avaya Layoffs Hit Customer Success, Marketing Hard

Communications provider Avaya has announced its second round of layoffs in 2024.

The vendor has shed an unknown number of employees, but analysts and media reports estimate it is more than the 180 people Avaya cut in July. Avaya confirmed the restructuring in a statement to Channel Futures.

“Avaya continues to align its investments in people and resources to enable us to compete and win in the marketplace. Our team has made great strides in FY24, focusing on customers to improve retention, extend contracts and achieve our targets. As we enter our FY25, we continue to align our people and investments to instill the disciplined and disproportionate focus on customers we are best positioned to serve and the innovations that are most crucial for their success. Avaya is uniquely positioned with the people and portfolio to deliver the comprehensive solutions the enterprise market demands —demonstrating our commitment to building and sustaining a profitable company," the company said.

Inside the Avaya Layoffs

The Avaya layoff came on Nov. 6 for most affected employees, who have taken to social media and other job websites to share their stories. A scan of impacted employees on LinkedIn shows cuts in Avaya's marketing, sales, engineering and customer experience divisions.

Related:Avaya Laying Off Roughly 180 People

"Whole teams within ACES [Avaya Customer Experience Services] are being exited," an anonymous poster on TheLayoff.com wrote.

The deal comes as Avaya puts a bigger focus on its largest 1,500 customers, ZK Research's Zeus Karravala told CX Today. The July Avaya layoffs targeted its "go-to-customer" function to help the vendor focus on enterprise and government clients, according to the company.

The layoffs include the company's global AI practice lead, head of Americas performance marketing and the vice president of renewals and customer success.

Executive Departures

Perhaps unrelated to the Avaya layoffs, some key leaders have departed the company. Senior vice president and chief product officer Omar Javaid has accepted the role of CEO at analog semiconductor provider Spectra7 Microsystems. Avaya vice president of global support services Tammie Briscoe resigned in October.

Alan Masarek announced his retirement from his role as Avaya CEO in July but stayed on to serve as advisor to new CEO Patrick Dennis. Masarek had helmed Avaya during its emergence from chapter 11 bankruptcy.

"While there is more work to get done, the beauty of this handoff to Patrick is all about continuity, as we have been on the board together for 14 months and [he was] involved in all the hiring and strategy setting. And we went through a huge financial restructuring, resetting our strategy," Masarek told Channel Futures in July. "... We have a brand new senior team, which Patrick has stayed involved with ... down to the layer below the senior team, there is a lot of new blood there."

Related:SEC Fines Avaya, Check Point, Others for Underplaying SolarWinds Hack