Weeks after confirming its new CEO Ron Chiarello, Nigerian genomics startup 54gene has made another round of layoffs.
According to a source close to the 54gene, the company laid off 25%—about 10 employees—of its already lean workforce. This comes months after the star-tup laid off over 195 people between August and October 2022.
At the time, the company announced the layoffs as a move to restructure its struggling business as it had soared during COVID, then rapidly dwindled in resources as the pandemic died off.
This round of layoffs continues the business’ restructuring plan which is being led by its new leader Chiarello.
In an email to the press, the company said, “54gene’s new leadership is focused on prioritising the company’s core mission and positioning the company for future success, and that means certain roles were redefined or eliminated in recent months.”
The company—which started 2022 with 300 employees—now reportedly has just about 30 people across departments. Sources claim that its marketing, sales and compliance teams have been completely scrapped. Another claims that there are currently only six people manning its core genomic offerings: sequencing, biobank, and genotyping.
While 54gene declares that its obligations to its dismissed employees were fulfilled, its present workforce worries that the company will fall apart and burn out employees if it doesn’t get more hands.
