Secureworks Listing 77K SF Of Its HQ For Sublease As It Lays Off Hundreds

An Atlanta-based cybersecurity firm is laying off nearly one-tenth of its workforce and cutting its real estate budget as it grapples with global economic headwinds and a shift in business direction.

Secureworks disclosed in a regulatory filing that it plans to cut 9% of its global workforce. It didn't detail how many positions it would cut at its Atlanta headquarters, but the company has been attempting to sublease part of its offices at 1 Concourse Parkway at the Concourse Corporate Center office campus for at least six months, Bisnow has learned.

Secureworks leases a total of 115K SF at 1 Concourse Corporate Center in Central Perimeter, according to Avison Young. The firm has been marketing two floors spanning almost 77K SF for sublease. It is attempting to woo a subtenant as Atlanta sublease availability is at an all-time high, according to CoStar data.

Earlier this week, Secureworks CEO Wendy Thomas informed employees in a letter filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the company is shifting focus from its Counter Threat Platform to its cloud-based Taegis security system.

“This demands an agile footing, and a smaller, more focused team,” Thomas wrote. “We are forging a structure that emphasizes simplicity and agility, requiring fewer roles and different skill sets. This is also happening in a time when some world economies are in a period of uncertainty, and our path to profitability will be achieved in part by reducing our spending.”

Secureworks originally leased its headquarters in 2012 at 1 Concourse and renewed and expanded in 2020, according to Avison Young. Brian Boyd, a partner with the Atlanta-based commercial real estate brokerage firm Scotland Wright Associates, represents the cybersecurity firm. He declined to comment. 

While Secureworks didn't disclose the specific count of jobs cut, the company had 2,351 workers as of January 2022, MarketWatch reported. Nine percent of that would be about 212 employees affected by the cuts. Dell Technologies, which owns more than 80% of outstanding Secureworks shares, also recently announced it was laying off 6,650 employees. 

Secureworks expects to spend $16M on severance and real estate related-expenses, according to the SEC filing.

“The businesses we’ve exited required a different organization, and we assessed the team structure, roles, and capabilities best aligned to support our go-forward business,” Thomas said in the letter. “The roles we’re reducing reflect the outcome of that review.”