ScribbleLive has laid off at least 40 members of its staff today, BetaKit has learned.
Multiple sources familiar with the matter confirmed the number today, indicating that the layoffs are predominantly in marketing and coincide with the shut down of the company’s European offices in London and Berlin. ScribbleLive launched its UK office in 2011, expanded its presence in the region in August 2016 with the acquisition of SEO platform LinkDex.
Today’s layoffs follow 27 employees laid off in early March, including the company’s VP of engineering.
The company is currently having its all-hands meeting to address the changes. According to one person BetaKit spoke with, remaining employees were told that the staff reduction was to avoid a reliance upon investor money for growth.
ScribbleLive recently laid off 27 people worldwide from its engineering and product teams in early March, including VP of engineering, Bob Barnard, who came to the company through its acquisition of CoverItLive in 2014. Those familiar with the size of the company placed its total headcount at 200 people at the time.
A statement provided by ScribbleLive said that the March layoffs were made “in order to streamline the organization and to ensure it aligns to our product strategy.”
Those layoffs came during a search for a new CEO, after Vincent Mifsud stepped down in January 2018 to join Markham-based Enghouse Systems as president. Then-CFO Efrem Ainsley took his place as interim CEO while the company for a successor. Ainsley is currently listed as CEO on ScribbleLive’s website.
BetaKit has reached out to ScribbleLive for comment.
Douglas Soltys contributed to the reporting of this story.