Seattle-area tech layoffs continue to mount; Qualtrics to cut 14% of jobs

The tech sector in Seattle continues to shrink, with the latest being Qualtrics’ elimination of about 780 jobs.

The customer and employee experience company announced the layoffs in an email to employees published on Qualtrics’ website.

“Rapid hiring was essential to enable our growth up to this point, but it also created complexity that does not support continued growth at our scale,” CEO Zig Serafin wrote in the email. “Simply put, the organizational structures, work processes, and the way we made decisions previously don’t work for the company we’ve become or the company we aspire to be.”

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Impacted employees will get at least 10 weeks of severance.

“To those who are leaving, I am truly sorry. I know this explanation doesn’t make it any better for you,” Serafin said. “On behalf of the entire company, thank you for everything you’ve given to Qualtrics and for the chapters you have helped to write.”

The layoffs will affect 14% of the company’s current employee count.

“And to everyone, as we tackle this difficult day together, thank you for your resilience and commitment to our customers, partners and each other. There are better days ahead for all of us,” Serafin wrote.

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Qualtrics also announced plans in January to cut roughly 270 workers, or about 5% of the company at the time.

It has more than 20,000 clients, including Spotify, Samsung and Toyota.

The company is located in the 2+U tower at 1201 Second Ave. in downtown Seattle. Qualtrics also has an office in Provo, Utah.