Apple has cut dozens of roles across its global sales division, marking one of the company’s rare workforce reductions as it moves to streamline how it sells products to corporate, education, and government clients.
Employees were informed of the layoffs over the past two weeks, according to people familiar with the changes. The cuts affected multiple parts of the sales organisation, including account managers who work with major institutions and staff members who run Apple’s executive briefing centers used for high-profile demonstrations.
Apple confirmed a restructuring was underway but did not disclose how many roles were eliminated.
“To connect with even more customers, we are making changes in our sales team that affect a small number of roles,” the company said in a statement. “We are continuing to hire, and affected employees can apply for open positions.”
The move surprised many internally, not only because layoffs are uncommon at Apple but because it comes during a period of strong revenue growth. The company is on pace for nearly $140 billion in sales this quarter — a potential all-time high — and is preparing to introduce a new low-cost laptop next year aimed at business and education buyers.
The restructuring follows the loss of about 20 sales jobs in Australia and New Zealand several weeks earlier. Employees impacted by the latest cuts have until January 20 to secure a new position within Apple or receive severance.
Some inside the company said the changes reflect a shift toward relying more heavily on third-party resellers, which some large organizations prefer working with and which allow Apple to reduce internal operating costs.
Longtime staff were among those dismissed, including employees with 20–30 years at the company. One major area hit was a government sales team that works with U.S. agencies such as the Department of Defense and Department of Justice — a group already strained following a 43-day government shutdown and budget reductions overseen by the Department of Government Efficiency.
Apple’s sales division reports directly to CEO Tim Cook and is led by vice president Mike Fenger. His deputy, Vivek Thakkar, took on broader responsibilities earlier this year and now oversees all enterprise and education sales.
While Apple typically avoids sweeping layoffs — Cook has previously called them a “last resort” — the company did cut an unusually large number of jobs in 2024 due to cancelled product initiatives and economic pressures, including the end of its self-driving car project and downsizing within several AI and services teams.
Across the tech industry, workforce reductions remain widespread. Amazon recently announced more than 14,000 job cuts, while Meta trimmed several hundred roles from its AI division.
