Cerner issues another round of layoffs

Cerner will lay off 131 U.S.-based employees as part of its effort to increase operating margins to 20 percent by the end of 2019, according to Kansas City Business Journal.

The layoffs, which will affect 60 employees at the Kansas City, Mo.-based company's headquarters, will be the last round this year, the publication reports. Cerner onboarded more than 4,000 associates in 2019 and will continue to hire hundreds more next year, a Cerner spokesperson said in a Nov. 12 statement emailed to Becker's Hospital Review. Employees impacted by the layoffs are eligible for new hiring opportunities, the spokesperson added. 

"As mentioned in our earnings call [in July], we're looking to identify organizational efficiencies as we implement our new operating model," the spokesperson said. "Part of that strategy includes a realignment of resources focused on key growth areas across the company."

In September, Cerner laid off 255 employees to help meet its operating margins target. Additional cost savings initiatives in 2019 included the EHR vendor's $40 million buyout program, which provided payouts and benefits to some tenured employees who agreed to leave the company.

To meet its margin targets, Cerner will need to cut an estimated $200 million in costs by the end of the year, according to the report. The company announced its operating margin targets of 20 percent and 22.5 percent for the fourth quarter of 2019 and 2020, respectively, when it overhauled part of its board of directors in April.

Cerner employs around 30,000 people, with 14,000 employees based in Kansas City, according to the report.

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