CEO accidently sends major layoff email to all employees: ‘Apologies that I included the wrong group but…’

The email contained detailed information on restructuring plans affecting several departments, including support staff, the implementation team, project management, quality assurance (QA), and TSA engineers. The CEO also emphasised the importance of retaining the remaining employees, referred to as “keepers,” reassuring them, and avoiding unnecessary anxiety during the transition.

Within minutes of sending it, the CEO realised the mistake, and attempted to mitigate it. However, the message had already been read by many staff, igniting speculation both inside and outside the company.

In the follow-up email, the CEO said, “Apologies that I included a wrong group here. But the message is what I want to land. Our intention is to ensure you understand what we are doing and do not feel that there is constant risk/change. Apologies for the sneak peek – info to come.”

Screenshot of the Reddit post

The incident quickly caught the attention of Reddit users, who debated whether the CEO had been careless or whether the unintentional exposure might prompt the company to adopt greater transparency.

One user wrote, “Any CEO that is moving from on-prem to 100% SaaS is using a 7-10 year old playbook that most who have attempted are walking back. This guy is a clown and then he sent the email.” Another asked, “How do you cc the company on such a sensitive email?! The CEO is an idiot.”

A third commented, “This is the notice I wish we got. Now at least the keepers who will find jobs fastest will probably be first to leave and the company will have to adjust. This helps keep everyone employed vs the latter.”