AI pressures and revenue slowdown accompany Canva's restructuring

Australian design platform Canva announced a major restructuring affecting 1,271 employees (22% of its workforce), including layoffs, role adjustments, and relocations to key hubs, following the company's first growth slowdown in a decade.

Australian design platform Canva announced a major restructuring affecting 1,271 employees, representing 22% of its workforce, including layoffs, role adjustments, and relocations to key hubs, following the company's first growth slowdown in a decade. The company did not disclose how many employees would lose their jobs out of those affected. CEO and co-founder Melanie Perkins described the changes as coming in the hardest year the company has faced since its founding. According to a report by Forbes Australia on Wednesday, Perkins said in an internal message to employees that the restructuring aims to streamline management, reduce overlapping levels and responsibilities, and empower small teams to make decisions more flexibly. The plan includes merging product, growth, and platform teams into one organizational unit, along with strengthening product development teams in Sydney, which will become a key hub for these activities. Canva also plans to adjust its flexible work policy, expecting most hybrid employees to attend offices two to three days a week starting January next year, depending on regional work patterns. The company had previously adopted a more flexible policy requiring employees to attend the nearest hub only twice every three months, before later dropping that requirement. The restructuring comes as Canva faces pressures from slowing revenue growth and rising AI operational costs.