The Sun's going down

Sun Microsystems decided to slash approximately 5000 jobs last week as a part of its effort to improve profitability and increase competitivenes. The decision was made under pressure from shareholders, to prevent the company from being sold over. This move happened just 5 weeks after appointment of Jonathan Schwartz as CEO, taking over from the founder Scott McNealy.

For analysts, it is simply a question for calculating the right numbers. Look at the statistics below:

• Approximate number of jobs to be eliminated: 4,000 to 5,000
• Estimated cost: $340 to $500 million
• Percentage of the workforce to be trimmed: 11 to 13 percent
• Expected annual savings: $480 to $590 million