Report: Walmart cuts, relocates, about 1,000 corporate jobs
Walmart is cutting jobs as it looks to simplify operations.
The retail giant is cutting or relocating approximately 1,000 corporate workers as part of its plan to combine its global technology and product teams to boost efficiency. Some of the affected employees — who are mainly from the company’s global technology and product teams – have been asked to relocate to Walmart's Bentonville (Ark.) or Northern California offices, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news.
A company spokeswoman told the Journal that the changes are "related to organizational structure and alignment, not handing over more tasks to artificial intelligence.”
The move comes as Walmart is combining its global technology and product design divisions and those of Sam’s Clubs and international markets into a single shared platform, according to a memo to staff by Suresh Kumar, global chief technology officer, and chief development officer, and Daniel Danker, executive VP of AI acceleration and product design.
"We've made changes to simplify how the work is organized, make ownership clearer, and better align roles to the work and skills we need going forward," they wrote in the memo, as reported by Business Insider.
In the memo, Kumar and Danker said that some work has been consolidated, and some roles have been eliminated, “and we know that has a real impact on people and teams.”
“We’re supporting those affected with care, including helping them explore other opportunities within Walmart where possible,” they wrote. “Ultimately, we're designing a team that's set up to move faster, scale what works and deliver better experiences for customers and members everywhere.”
Last year around this time, Walmart eliminated roughly 1,500 corporate jobs in Bentonville, primarily in technology, e-commerce fulfillment and its advertising platform.
Walmart is the nation’s largest private employer, with approximately 1.6 million U.S. employees and 2.1 million globally.
