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Strategic shift sees TinyCo instigate not-so-tiny layoffs

27 employees let go

Strategic shift sees TinyCo instigate not-so-tiny layoffs

San Francisco-based TinyCo has laid off 27 employees as part of a wider strategic shift within the company set to be outlined in the following weeks.

Just as the company announced its most recent hire – former Mobile Pie creative director Will Luton – TinyCo has admitted its been forced to "consolidate" its operations around its HQ, though details of just where the cuts have fallen isn't clear.

That latest cuts, however, follow previous layoffs that hit the developer's offices in Argentina and, interestingly, its base in San Francisco, despite the successes of casual hits such as Tiny Chef and Tiny Monsters for Android and iOS.

Tiny company indeed

"We've moved 10 steps forward on executing a specific strategy around how we build games and what games we build," detailed CEO Suleman Ali in a statement to TechCrunch.

"To execute against this strategy, we decided to consolidate game development out of our SF office and reduce our staff. Laying people off sucks, especially since TinyCo has always been a breeding ground for great friendships.

"We'll provide more updates, including a game launch, in the near future."

Tiny Chef

Despite Ali's claim that the company 'breeds talent', it would appear TinyCo has quickly fostered a reputation for "poor job security" according to one former employee, who details on job site GlassDoor that he/she is "not optimistic about the outlook for this company".

"Upper management belittles existing talent, wanting 'new blood' only for newly opened positions instead of giving existing talent a chance," detailed the anonymous contributor.

TinyCo has a notable backer in the former of former Foursquare supporter Andreessen Horowitz, however, which lead an $18 million investment round in the company back in February 2011.

What do you call someone who has an unhealthy obsession with video games and Sean Bean? That'd be a 'Chris Kerr'. Chris is one of those deluded souls who actually believes that one day Sean Bean will survive a movie. Poor guy.