Secureworks to cut 15 per cent of staff in second round of layoffs

The cybersecurity vendor is making the move to help ‘deliver profitable growth’ as it focuses on its Taegis XDR platform

Secureworks disclosed on Monday layoffs that impact 15 per cent of its staff, marking the second round of job cuts at the cybersecurity vendor in six months.

The company — which is majority-owned by Dell Technologies — had reduced its workforce by nine per cent in early February.

In a memo to staff that was filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Secureworks president and CEO Wendy Thomas wrote that the latest cuts are intended to help the company "deliver profitable growth."

The vendor continues to heighten its focus on growth areas including its Taegis extended detection and response (XDR) platform, Thomas wrote.

"Taegis is growing, making up 86 per cent of our total ARR at the end of Q1 … And we are continuing to invest in the growth of our business, aligned to our strategic priorities," she wrote.

Secureworks did not disclose the total number of workers affected by the latest layoffs in the filing with the SEC. The company last disclosed its employee headcount in a regulatory filing in March, when it said that it had 2,149 employees as of 3 February.

The company expects to "substantially complete" the layoffs during the third quarter of its fiscal 2024, which runs through the end of October.