Novo Nordisk to cut 9,000 jobs, about 11.5% of its workforce

Novo Nordisk announced on Sept. 10, 2025 that it plans to eliminate about 9,000 positions, roughly 11.5% of its 78,400-person global workforce, with about 5,000 of the cuts expected in its home country of Denmark ^[1][2][3]. The company said the restructuring is meant to simplify its organization, speed up decision-making and shift resources toward diabetes and obesity ^[1]. Novo declined to specify which business units will be affected ^[2][3].

It is the first major move by CEO and President Maziar Mike Doustdar, who took over last month after the company parted ways with longtime chief executive Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen ^[1][2]. The company said the restructuring will begin immediately, with affected employees receiving layoff communications over the next few months, pending local labor negotiations ^[2].

The numbers behind the cuts

Novo expects the reduction to save about 8 billion Danish kroner a year by the end of 2026 — converted by news outlets to roughly $1.25 billion to $1.3 billion ^[2][3][5]. One-time restructuring costs of 8 billion kroner will weigh on this year's results ^[1][5]. Reuters reported 9 billion crowns in one-off costs tied to the overhaul, a difference from the 8 billion figure other outlets cited ^[3].

As a result, Novo now expects full-year operating profit growth of 4% to 10% at constant exchange rates, down from the 10% to 16% range it gave in August ^[1][2][5]. At the start of 2025 the company had forecast growth of 19% to 27% ^[3]. Reuters described the Sept. 10 announcement as Novo's third profit warning this year ^[3].

Novo said it will reinvest the savings into its drug pipeline, manufacturing and patient access, and into obesity launches in new markets ^[3]. "We need to have the best-in-class launches, especially as competition is increasing," Doustdar said ^[3].

The cuts follow a global hiring freeze on non-critical roles announced in August ^[3][5]. Novo employed about 78,000 people at the end of August 2025, an 80% increase from five years earlier, according to one account ^[4]. One analyst said the layoffs take Novo's headcount back to early 2024 levels ^[3], and Reuters called it the largest layoff in Denmark's history ^[3].

The company is under pressure on several fronts. Eli Lilly's Zepbound, a tirzepatide medicine, overtook Wegovy in weekly U.S. prescriptions earlier this year ^[2][3]. On his final earnings call, then-CEO Jørgensen said the U.S. market for compounded semaglutide was "equal" in size to Novo's own GLP-1 business ^[2], and the company has filed more than 130 lawsuits against compounders ^[5]. One analyst estimated that of about 3 million people in the U.S. taking these medicines, 2 million are on Lilly's or Novo's drugs and 1 million are on compounded versions ^[4]. Novo's shares have fallen nearly 46% since the start of the year, leaving a market value of about $181 billion, down from a peak of roughly $650 billion ^[3].

Why it matters for patients

Nothing in the announcement changes the FDA approval or labeling of Ozempic, Wegovy or Rybelsus, and Novo has not said the cuts will affect the supply or manufacturing of those medicines. Novo said it will put the savings into research and development, manufacturing expansion and global patient access ^[2][3], and one analyst said the company now has more supply than demand ^[4].

Several longer-term forces could affect what patients pay. Semaglutide is scheduled for U.S. federal price negotiations in 2027 under a mechanism created by the Biden administration, and Novo's patents in various countries begin to expire from 2028, opening the drug to generic competition ^[4]. Analysts also expect continued pressure from compounded versions, which the FDA has restricted now that official shortages have ended ^[4][5]. Novo has not disclosed how the cuts will be spread across job functions or countries beyond Denmark.

What happens next

Layoff notices will go out over the next few months, subject to local labor rules ^[2]. Novo expects to save 1 billion kroner in the fourth quarter of 2025 and to reach the full annual savings rate by the end of 2026 ^[3]. The company reports third-quarter results in November, when Bank of America analysts said they expect a fourth profit warning ^[3]. Novo has also told employees they must return to the office starting Jan. 1 ^[7].