Oracle cutting staff

December 28, 2001: 5:05 p.m. ET

Software maker plans to cut as many as 840 jobs beginning next month.

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Enterprise software maker Oracle Corp. will cut as many as 840 jobs from its global workforce of 42,000 as part of a realignment of the company's services business.

An Oracle spokesman said the cuts would represent between 1 and 2 percent of the company's global workforce, and most would come from its services division.

"While certainly some people will leave the organization, others will be redeployed," the spokesman said.

The job cuts appear to be related to a bigger management shift at the Redwood, Calif.-based company.

Earlier this month, Jay Nussbaum stepped down as executive vice president of Oracle's services business after 10 years, taking a senior executive position at the enterprise software and services division of KPMG Consulting.

When Nussbaum announced his resignation from Oracle, Larry Ellison, the company's chairman and CEO, indicated that there were some redundancies between Nussbaum's group and Oracle's North American sales group and said his responsibilities would be divided among other Oracle executives.

Oracle (ORCL: up $0.07 to $14.06, Research, Estimates) shares rose 7 cents to $14.06 on Nasdaq ahead of the announcement, which was made after the closing bell. They moved modestly higher in after-hours trade.