Automattic layoffs hit four teams as WordPress.com parent braces for more cuts

Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com, WooCommerce and Tumblr, has begun cutting jobs across four business areas, with further layoffs expected in the months ahead.

The cuts, which have taken place over at least the past week, have affected the company’s communications and social teams, WordPress.com and its VIP enterprise business. The company has not disclosed the total number of employees affected.

The latest departures add to a period of leadership and organisational uncertainty at Automattic, following a boardroom dispute involving chief executive Matt Mullenweg and several senior executive exits.

Four business areas affected by the cuts

TechCrunch reported that employees across multiple functions have been let go during October, including staff working in marketing and product at WordPress.com.

The affected areas include:

• Communications: Automattic’s director of communications, Megan Fox, said on LinkedIn last week that her role had been eliminated, describing the departure as an “unexpected end”.

• Social team: Employees working in the company’s social media function have also been affected.

• WordPress.com: Cuts have reached the company’s flagship website-hosting and publishing business, including employees in marketing and product, according to TechCrunch.

• VIP enterprise business: The company’s enterprise-focused division has also experienced layoffs.

The company has not confirmed a total job-cut figure. Its About page lists 1,397 staff, according to TechCrunch, but this represents the reported overall headcount rather than the number of employees being laid off.

Boardroom upheaval preceded the latest departures

The layoffs come after a turbulent period for Automattic’s leadership. In September, an attempt by the company’s board to remove Mullenweg as chief executive failed.

The dispute was followed by a complete turnover of the board and departures among senior executives, including the chief financial officer, interim CFO and chief legal officer.

Automattic’s interim CFO, Jeremy Klaperman, left earlier in October, only weeks after the boardroom shake-up. Mullenweg subsequently suggested on X that Klaperman may have been offended by the company’s decision to seek external candidates for the position.

The publication also reported that Mullenweg had asked Klaperman to reconsider his departure.

Separately, TechCrunch reported that Mullenweg shared personal information about a departing executive in an internal Slack discussion. The information concerned a health matter affecting the executive’s spouse and a dispute over continued health insurance coverage.

Some employees were shocked by the disclosure. The report also noted that Mullenweg said his own fiancée had been affected by the same health condition.

Company says changes are being staggered

Automattic has offered limited public detail about the scale of the job cuts. When approached by TechCrunch last week, Mullenweg said the number of terminations was not above the company’s normal levels.

Asked on Wednesday about the growing number of reported departures, he said he was “mostly focused on PHP”, referring to a security issue affecting the programming language.

Automattic spokesperson Chenda Ngak said the company was staggering the organisational changes to provide more generous severance and allow employees more time with the company.

The statement did not specify how many jobs would be eliminated or when the process would end.

More cuts may follow in the coming months

People familiar with the situation told TechCrunch that further layoffs could be spread across the months ahead. The report suggested the company may be seeking to improve its fourth-quarter revenue figures before a debt renegotiation expected in June.

Automattic has not publicly confirmed this reported financial rationale or announced a timeline for any additional cuts.

The coming months will therefore be important in determining the final scale of the restructuring. Until the company provides more detail, the total number of affected employees and the extent of any further reductions remain unclear.