Symantec hires AlixPartners to support cost savings transformation

Cybersecurity giant Symantec has hired business advisory firm AlixPartners to support its leaders with a large operational excellence transformation, aimed to achieve cost savings of $400 million by the end of its fiscal 2018.

Symantec, founded in 1982 and today with nearly 20,000 employees, is one of the globe’s largest technology companies that specialises in software for security, storage and backup.

As part of its long term strategy, drafted mid 2015 after the former Symantec split into two independent publicly traded companies*, the Mountain View, California based firm launched a large cost savings effort. The transformation, part of a wider $5.5 billion capital return programme, aims at realising cost savings of $400 million by the end of its fiscal 2018, primarily in its enterprise security business. “Our management team has already taken significant steps to improve operating margins and return our enterprise security business to revenue growth as part of our three-year transformation to a focused security company. As we look ahead, we believe we are well-positioned to continue this momentum of improving operating margins and achieving our targeted cost savings of $400 million by the end of our fiscal year 2018”, says Symantec CEO Michael Brown, who has been at the helm since March 2014.

To support the organisational restructuring and operational excellence programme, Brown has turned to AlixPartners, an international consulting firm specialised in management consultancy services. AlixPartners has been an advisor to Symantec’s board for a number of years, and the latest deal sees the partnership continue for another two to three years. In recent years, Symantec has been praised by analysts for the methodical approach it takes for cost-cutting.

AlixPartners has been tasked with taking the firm’s enterprise security business under scrutiny and identifying areas for cost savings. Benefit realisation will kick off immediately for quick wins, with larger transitions expected to be launched next year. The US cybersecurity giant has not disclosed specific details about where costs will be cut in the enterprise security business.

* Symantec split into one company which focuses on security, and another that focuses on information management. In August 2015, the information management unit was spun-off as Veritas Technologies and sold to private equity firm The Carlyle Group.