Chinese cybersecurity firm 360 cuts jobs as founder calls for consolidation to focus on digital security
- In an internal letter last week, founder Zhou Hongyi said 360 ‘used to stretch all five fingers and do everything’ but ‘now needs to make a fist’ to focus on digital security
- In the first half of the year, 360 reported a loss of 398 million yuan compared with a profit of 572 million yuan a year before, while revenue declined 14 per cent
Chinese cybersecurity company 360 Security Technology, which has accused the US of cyberattacks against China, is conducting lay-offs and divestments as part of a consolidation plan that founder Zhou Hongyi hinted at in a letter to employees last week.
The company’s government and corporate security business unit is laying off most of its staff, except for those in Beijing and eastern China, including Shanghai, according to a report on Tuesday by local media Jiemian.
In an internal letter circulated to employees last week, Zhou said 360 “used to stretch all five fingers and do everything” but “now needs to make a fist” to focus on digital security.
Zhou also hinted at workforce optimisation by saying the company “isn’t going to become a nursing home”, a term used to describe a huge inefficient enterprise where some veteran employees stay in their comfort zone. “Key positions will be filled by those who win the competition. [We have to] stay hungry and fight,” he wrote.
Zhou also announced that the government and corporate security group would be renamed the “digital security group” to reflect its new focus, including to serve cities as a whole and provide software as a service (Saas) to small and medium-sized firms.
