TomTom, a Dutch geolocation technology specialist, has announced that it will cut about 10 per cent of the jobs in the organisation, globally. That means, about 500 employees will be laid off, globally, in the ‘maps’ unit of the Company. TomTom employs over 5000 employees worldwide and about 1000 in India.
In an official announcement, the Company has mentioned that TomTom has made significant advancements in mapmaking technology as a result of engineering investments, which will lead to a significant material change in mapmaking activities.
“Higher levels of automation and the integration of a variety of digital sources will result in fresher and richer maps, with wider coverage. These better maps will improve our product offerings and allow us to address a broader market, both in the automotive and enterprise businesses,” says Harold Goddijn, CEO, TomTom.
The Company is seeing an organisational reset due to automation, which has forced these job cuts. “The improvement in our mapmaking technology will lead to material efficiency gains”, which in combination with better maps, “will strengthen our competitive position”.
Regrettably, this will have an intended impact on approximately 500 employees in our Maps unit, equivalent to around 10% of our total global headcount,” mentions the statement by the company.
Earlier, TomTom had restructured its teams and divisions in 2011. At that time, it had cut 10 per cent of global jobs, which accounted for about 457 jobs in the company. According to reports, out of the 457 jobs, 255 were made redundant while the rest were shed through attrition.
