Waterloo-based software company OpenText is cutting 1,200 jobs as part of a business-streamlining plan.

WATERLOO, Ontario — OpenText Corp.’s chief executive said the company plans to cut about 1,200 positions as part of a business optimization plan.

In an open letter to stakeholders, Mark Barrenechea says the move is aimed at enabling the right talent to be hired in the right roles, funding growth and innovation, and delivering higher productivity, lower costs and wider margins.

He says the job cuts at the Waterloo, Ontario-based software company will involve one-time costs of about $60 million but will result in savings of about $150 million annually.

The move will be combined with plans to create 800 new positions in sales and engineering and marks a new chapter in the company’s history.

The new chapter, called OpenText 3.0, will focus on innovations in cloud computing, security and artificial intelligence.

Barrenechea says that in the cloud computing segment, the company will look for ways to automate and increase employee productivity, and in the artificial intelligence segment, it will look for ways to transform business processes.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2024.

Companies in this article: (TSX:OTEX)

Canadian Press