Okta to cut 400 jobs following tech peers in reducing costs

OKTA, a software company known for login and identity services, is cutting 7 per cent of its staff to reduce costs, adding to a list of other tech firms that have been doing the same this year.

The reductions will impact about 400 employees, chief executive officer Todd McKinnon wrote in an e-mail to staff on Thursday (Feb 1). “We need to be mindful of our overall spend so we can continue to invest in the areas, products and routes to market with the most opportunity,” he said.

San Francisco-based Okta is the latest technology company to reduce headcount this year, following Amazon.com, Alphabet’s Google and Salesforce. Okta cut about 300 employees in February 2023 due to overhiring and “execution challenges”, according to McKinnon.

Okta estimates it will incur about US$24 million in severance and benefits costs during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024 as a result of the job cuts. The company reaffirmed its quarterly guidance and said it will announce financial results on Feb 28.

The shares, which have declined 8.7 per cent so far this year, rose 2.6 per cent as trading opened in New York on Thursday. BLOOMBERG