HubSpot cuts 7% of staff, ending 660 roles in restructuring

HubSpot has announced it is reducing its workforce by approximately 7%, a move that will result in the departure of nearly 660 employees. The company stated that this decision follows a strategic pivot over the past year from building software to deliver outcomes for customers using artificial intelligence. According to the internal communication, the change is necessary to fundamentally alter how the organization is structured to compete and win in this new market environment.

The restructuring is driven by three specific operational changes. First, HubSpot is organizing its product teams around customer outcomes, such as generating demand and scaling growth, rather than by specific software hubs. This approach aims to give teams full ownership of the customer journey. Second, the company is flattening its organizational structure by reducing management layers to bring decision-making closer to the employees executing the work. Third, it is creating more agile teams with clear ownership to eliminate fragmented responsibilities and allow for faster execution.

Management explicitly clarified that this reduction in force is not driven by AI-related efficiencies or a simple cost-cutting exercise. The company stated it remains committed to investing in AI to improve productivity and has been disciplined about growing headcount slower than revenue. Instead, the leadership team described the move as a realignment of resources to focus on the company's highest priorities and biggest opportunities. The decision was guided by six criteria, including strategic need, organizational layers, revenue drive, capability, capacity, and leadership alignment.

Employees leaving the company will receive a severance package consisting of 20 weeks of base pay plus one week for each year of service, capped at 30 weeks. In the United States, departing staff will receive five months of COBRA health benefits as a lump sum, while global employees will receive five months of coverage through Modern Health. All affected employees will have access to six months of career transition outplacement services. Additionally, impacted staff are permitted to keep their company-issued laptops and work-from-home equipment such as monitors and keyboards, provided company data is remotely cleaned from the devices.

The rollout of the announcement is immediate. In the United States, impacted employees received emails from the People Team within 15 minutes of the announcement containing transition details. Outside the U.S., the process and timing vary based on local laws and practices, though affected employees were also notified within the same timeframe. Every departing employee was given the opportunity for a one-on-one conversation with a HubSpot manager within one day of the announcement. The company noted that while an email cannot address every question, having a direct line to management was considered essential during this transition.