Nokia Siemens to slash 17,000 jobs

Nokia Siemens Networks today said it planned to shrink by 17,000 employees over the next two years, slashing its workforce by 23% while focusing its business on the mobile broadband market.

The news was expected, as the company announced in September it had failed to sell itself off to private equity buyers. At the same time, owners Nokia and Siemens each invested Euro 500 million in the company to keep it afloat (CP: NSN gets cash infusion from parents as Nokia continues to slash jobs).

Before finally acquiescing to the need to shrink its business, Nokia Siemens tried t o grow, closing a $975 million acquisition of Motorola’s networking business unit this summer (CP: Nokia Siemens-Motorola integration begins).
As part of the restructuring, the company said it will focus its business on “end-to-end mobile network infrastructure and services.”

"We believe that the future of our industry is in mobile broadband and services - and we aim to be an undisputed leader in these areas," said Rajeev Suri, chief executive officer of Nokia Siemens Networks, in a statement. "At the same time, we need to take the necessary steps to maintain long term competitiveness and improve profitability in a challenging telecommunications market."