WiseTech Global to cut workforce in half

Australian software and logistics firm WiseTech has said it will shed about 2,000 jobs over the next 24 months, citing productivity gains achieved by artificial intelligence as a key factor in its downsizing move.

The major software company said the age of manually writing code is over, as its shares jumped 7 per cent following strong half-year results.

“Software development has experienced its most significant shift in decades,” chief executive Zubin Appoo said on the back of the company releasing its half-yearly financial results.

“I am prepared to say this clearly: the era of manually writing code as the core act of engineering is over.

“AI amplifies the productivity of our expertise in logistics and trade, the rich datasets that WiseTech holds, and the network advantage that we have built over 30 years. And it allows us to move faster from ideas to real customer value through the efficiencies it brings in software development and product creation.”

While those about to lose their jobs may not be pleased with Appoo’s reasoning, one industry insider considered the job cuts to be a sensible move in a rapidly changing economy.

“This isn’t a cyclical job cut. It’s a structural reset of the workforce,” Richard Valente, Teleperformance’s executive vice president for Australia and New Zealand, told News.com.au.

“The era of large, transaction-processing teams is ending. The future workforce will manage AI systems, interpret complex data and step in when things go wrong.”

The job cuts come in the wake of positive news for the company, with its half-yearly results revealing that its revenue had climbed by 76 per cent over the previous six months to US$68.1 million ($96.5 million).

The market responded positively to WiseTech’s results, with shares rising by just over 7.5 per cent.

This is despite net profits falling by 36 per cent for the period, a cost associated with the integration of a new acquisition, cloud computing firm E2open.

According to some reports, E2open may bear the brunt of the layoffs, with up to half of its employees possibly on the chopping block.