Sonos layoffs: Company cuts top design and product executives amid restructuring
Follow UsSonos has laid off some of its senior executives from its design and product teams in recent weeks.
Internally, Sonos CEO Tom Conrad told employees that the changes are meant to reduce management layers.
Some longtime employees reportedly believe the layoffs are mainly a cost-cutting move.
Sonos has laid off some of its senior executives from its design and product teams in recent weeks as part of its latest restructuring. The job cuts have raised concerns about the company’s ability to develop new products. According to Bloomberg, those leaving the company include Dana Krieger, vice president of design who spent 12 years at Sonos. Kate Wojogbe, a senior user experience executive with nearly 10 years at the company, and Scott Fink, who worked at Sonos for 15 years and helped lead its home theatre business, have also been laid off.
SurveyThe cuts also affected others. Edward Mitchell, who worked as a designer at Sonos for around 12 years, posted on LinkedIn, “The design team is a little smaller now.” Rebecca Phillips, a user experience researcher, also posted, “Nearly the entire UX Research team was let go.” Kristen Leclerc, who led the user research department, was also among those laid off.
Also read: OpenAI launches GPT Live for more human-like ChatGPT voice conversations
Other experienced employees have also left the company. Michelle Enright, who led packaging and product sustainability efforts, lost her job after 14 years at Sonos. Sara Lincoln, a hardware product manager, was laid off after working at the company for 11 years.
Sonos confirmed the layoffs last month. A company spokesperson said Sonos still has experienced leaders across the affected teams and added that user research work will continue, as per the report.
Sonos CEO Tom Conrad told employees that the changes are meant to reduce management layers and make the company more competitive. In a memo seen by Bloomberg, Conrad wrote, “I want a Sonos that moves with more conviction and more velocity.” “Fewer months in conference rooms. More prototypes in our labs. More decisions made and executed. More exceptional products in the world for our customers.”
Interestingly, the spokesperson said last month that the layoffs are not related to AI. But Conrad said during a May earnings call that “AI is already transforming how we operate internally, from the way we build software to how we execute marketing to how I run the company.”
Some longtime employees reportedly believe the layoffs are mainly a cost-cutting move. They are also worried that losing experienced designers and researchers could affect future product development and the company’s culture.
Despite the restructuring, Sonos is said to be working on new products, including a second generation of its Ace headphones and updated home theatre solutions.
