Cisco says it will chop 6,000 jobs from its workforce

Network systems giant Cisco is cutting down on its workforce by as much as 8%, executives said during a fourth quarter earnings call yesterday. That equates to as many as 6,000 positions.

This is the third series of layoffs to come out of the company in the last few years. During the same time last year, the company said it would kill 4,000 jobs, according to Reuters.

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Cisco has long been at the top of the chain for connecting businesses with switchers and routers, but recent years have been tough for the company. With the influx of smaller companies, Cisco is no longer able to hold as large of a share of the global market as it once did.

Though product orders grew slightly in the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa, they were down by a sizable 7 percent in Asia Pacific, Japan, and China. Overall revenue dropped from $12.42 billion to $12.36 billion.

The company also saw losses relative to its switching and routing business, though data center and security revenues increased 30% — meaning there may be room for growth for the company. However, switching and routing services still bring in the majority of revenue for Cisco, and Chief Executive Officer John Chambers says he intends to lead the market.

“The ability to do that requires some tough decisions. We will manage our costs aggressively and drive efficiencies,” he said during the call.