Canva overhaul affects 1,271 staff, 22 percent of workforce

Canva co-founder and chief executive Melanie Perkins told staff on Tuesday that organisational changes will affect 1,271 people, 22 percent of the workforce, through a mix of layoffs, role changes and relocations to centralised hubs.

Why it matters: Canva is one of the largest private software companies to restructure this year, and the scale of the changes, following Squarespace's 19 percent cut a day earlier, underlines how design software firms are consolidating teams as growth slows.

Data as of The Verge report of November 3, 2026, read in full in this run, reporting chief executive Melanie Perkins's note to staff; the 1,271 figure covers layoffs, role changes and relocations combined, and no breakdown by category was published. Investing.com reported the same changes the same day. Developing item.

Canva will merge its Product, Growth and Platform teams into a single product organisation, simplify management layers and make Sydney the primary home for more product roles, chief executive Melanie Perkins told staff on Tuesday. The changes affect 1,271 people, 22 percent of staff: some will change roles, some will be asked to relocate to centralised hubs, and some will be laid off, with those leaving offered at least six months of salary, twelve months of healthcare coverage and career support.

Perkins said small changes would not be enough and that the company needs to return to small, empowered teams to set itself up for the next decade. From January, most hybrid employees will be expected in an office two to three days a week.

Canva overhaul affects 1,271 staff, 22 percent of workforce

Sources