Twilio plans to lay off 17% of staff, internal email shows

• Twilio plans to lay off 17% of its staff, according to an internal email. 
• Employees were expecting changes after top execs scheduled an unusual meeting on Super Bowl Sunday.
• The company is also reorganizing to create new business divisions.

Twilio plans to cut 17% of its staff, according to an email CEO Jeff Lawson sent to employees on Monday.

"This is upsetting to be sure, so I want to share with you the reasons for making this tough decision, as well as some other changes," Lawson wrote. "As we've refined our strategy over the past several months, it's become apparent we need significant structural changes to better execute our strategy.