Another quarter. Another victory lap. Another round of Atlassian executives congratulating themselves on their spectacular financial performance.
Revenue growth! AI! Record numbers! What an incredible time to be an Atlassian!
Unless, of course, you're one of the 1,600 employees shown the door in March.
Eight months later, severance has run out, and many former Atlassians are still unemployed.
But hey, how about that Williams Racing sponsorship? And congratulations to everyone enjoying Sales Club in Costa Rica! Nothing says "Build with heart and balance" quite like celebrating in paradise while former colleagues struggle to find work.
Meanwhile, Canva just announced a restructuring affecting more than 1,200 employees, and Microsoft is offering voluntary buyouts to 60,000 workers.
Apparently, the hottest trend in Big Tech isn't AI. It's figuring out how many humans you can eliminate while celebrating record performance.
And here's something current Atlassians might want to consider.
If strong financial results didn't protect 1,600 employees in 2026, what makes anyone think 2027 will be different?
Another restructuring? Another strategic realignment? Another AI-driven efficiency initiative?
Nobody knows what's coming. But one thing should be painfully obvious by now: You're only indispensable until a spreadsheet says otherwise.
Remember "Open company, no bullsh-t" and "Build with heart and balance"?
Perhaps Atlassian needs a new corporate value:
Celebrate the numbers. Forget the people.
So enjoy those quarterly earnings celebrations. Enjoy Formula 1. Enjoy Costa Rica.
Just remember that the people laid off in March probably thought they were safe, too.
1,600 in 2026. How many in 2027?
Because apparently, at Atlassian, everyone is a team player.
Until they're an expense.
1 reply
I just read on Linkeded that Atlassian did silent, isolated layoffs last week. Apparently, the future still involves getting rid of people. The recent LinkedIn posts suggest Atlassian employees are continuing to lose their jobs, eight months after the highly publicized layoffs.
No flashy announcement. No CEO memo making the rounds. Just more people discovering that their Jira ticket has been permanently closed.
Welcome to Layoffs-as-a-Service (LaaS). Continuous delivery, but for unemployment.
Of course, individual layoffs don't necessarily constitute another organized reduction in force. But here's a question worth asking: How many people can quietly disappear before someone starts counting?
Meanwhile, Atlassian continues celebrating financial milestones, sponsoring Formula 1, and reminding everyone what a wonderful place it is to work.
Nothing says "Team Anywhere" quite like "Career Nowhere."
And for those still employed at Atlassian, remember: your performance reviews, years of service, institutional knowledge, and glowing peer feedback are apparently no guarantee that you'll survive the next round of corporate optimization.
The March layoffs made headlines.
The quiet ones barely make a ripple.