Nokia will begin actions to reduce company personnel globally as part of its synergy and transformation program. The reduction exercise is expected to take place between now and the end of 2018, consistent with the company's synergy target timeline.
"These actions are designed to ensure that Nokia remains a strong industry leader. When we announced the acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent we made a commitment to deliver EUR 900 million in synergies - and that commitment has not changed,” Nokia President and CEO Rajeev Suri, said.
Suri added, “We also know that our actions will have real human consequences and, given this, we will proceed in a way that that is consistent with our company values and provide transition and other support to the impacted employees. The reductions will come largely in areas where there are overlaps, such as research and development, regional and sales organisations as well as corporate functions. The company said it will continue to target worldwide savings in real estate, services, procurement, supply chain and manufacturing.
Nokia said that it is taking steps to adapt to challenging market conditions and to shift resources to future-oriented technologies such as 5G, the Cloud and the Internet of Things.
Nokia’s representatives are meeting with the company's two European Works Councils to start the reduction process. “Similar meetings and consultations with employee representatives are taking place in almost 30 countries in the coming weeks. Processes and timelines will vary from one country to another,” the official statement added.
Nokia plans to report on the implementation of the synergy and transformation program in connection with its quarterly earnings releases.
