ServiceNow Layoffs Continue in US, UK and India as Severance Reaches $167M

LONDON (BYTEVYTE). ServiceNow has started another round of global layoffs affecting employees in the US, the UK and India, even as it says it still aims to end 2026 with the headcount it began the year with. The cuts, reported in early November 2026, add to a sequence of ServiceNow layoffs this year and come while the company's share price is under pressure. The company has not disclosed how many roles are being eliminated or which functions are affected.

In a statement, ServiceNow said it is restructuring its operations, gaining efficiencies, recruiting people with AI skills and keeping a careful watch on staffing levels. Reports describe the November round as the third layoff round of 2026. The company's position is that the restructuring reshapes the workforce rather than shrinks it overall.

ServiceNow layoffs and the severance bill

The quarterly filing shows the cost of the programme so far. In the third quarter of 2026, ServiceNow recorded $87 million for staff severance and related expenses, compared with $24 million a year earlier. For the first nine months of 2026, the total reached $167 million, against $53 million in the same period of 2025, with $153 million paid in cash and $34 million held in severance reserves at 30 September 2026.

Timing matters for these figures. ServiceNow recognises termination costs when employees are notified, so the November notifications would normally appear in fourth-quarter results rather than in the nine-month totals. We estimate that the reported figures do not yet capture the full cost of the current round. The filing also says the programme is expected to be substantially completed during 2026.

ServiceNow credits AI-driven efficiencies for the workforce changes, a gain the company puts at over $1 billion a year on an annualised basis. On the third-quarter earnings call, chief executive Bill McDermott framed the reduced headcount in a favourable light and noted that it had edged down a little. Chief financial officer Gina Mastantuono reported a sharp fall in sales operations staff, whereas salespeople carrying quotas rose by double digits. The $1 billion figure is the company's own estimate.

Flat headcount target against falling shares

The restructuring is running alongside a weak stock. ServiceNow shares are down more than 30% since the start of 2026, and they fell 35% between 23 October and 5 November. About 27% of that drop came on the day after the third-quarter results. Management expects constant-currency growth in current remaining performance obligations to reach 18.5% in the fourth quarter, which falls short of the 19.8% that investors had been counting on.

Taken together, the figures point to a company that is cutting costs while its growth outlook softened. Headcount reduction alone does not show whether the cuts protect margins or fund the AI investment the company describes. The flat-headcount goal and whether hires in AI roles will offset exits in other functions are the questions that will determine the outcome.

The cuts also carry a cost for affected employees, who have not been told which functions are involved in the current round. Comparable workforce and severance data from rival enterprise software vendors is absent from the sources, so this round cannot be placed against peers on cost or pace.

We would watch the fourth-quarter filing first. It should show how much of the November round is booked as severance, and whether the nine-month severance total of $167 million rises by a material amount. That number will show whether the reported cost of the programme matches the company's description of it as substantially complete in 2026.

While we strive for accuracy and rigor, ByteVyte can make mistakes. Readers are advised to verify all information independently and conduct due diligence before making decisions based on this reporting. We accept no liability for errors, omissions, or decisions made in reliance on this content.

Sources

ServiceNow, Inc. - Form 10-K - FY2024

Related Articles

• ServiceNow AI Restructuring Trims 300 Silicon Valley Jobs, With 1,000 Cuts Planned
• ServiceNow Shares Sink 27% on Record Day as Agentic AI Fears Hit Software
• Oracle AI infrastructure layoffs: 21,000 Jobs Cut and Counting

✔Human Verified

Researched and cross-referenced against primary sources by the Bytevyte editorial team. This article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the Bytevyte editorial team.