Cognizant lays off 200 senior executives in bid to realign workforce

In a bid to allign its talent pool to the newer digital requirements, the Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS) has reportedly laid off about 200 senior employees at the director level and above this year.

The employees have been given a severance payout of three-four months, reported The Times of India. 

The process, which was completed in August, is likely to cost $35 million to the company.

"As a part of our ongoing workforce management strategy, we ensure we have the right employee skill sets necessary to meet client needs and achieve our business goals. This process has resulted in changes, including some employees transitioning out of the company. We continue to enhance our capabilities and hire for roles across all our practice areas in the company. Details of severance or any other conditions of employment are confidential," the company told the daily.

Affected employees told TOI that they had been asked to sign a mutual release agreement with the company. Under the agreement, they had to acknowledge that they won't press legal action against the company or its directors or its officers.

The contract also states that the employee has entered into the agreement voluntarily. 

Last year, CTS had offered voluntary separation package to around 400 senior employees for which it spent around $35 million towards severance cost.

Overall, the report says the company's employee strength is growing. The company expects its global cloud workforce to exceed 20,000 associates by year-end.