Updated at 7:55 p.m.
A Colchester-based software company laid off employees on Tuesday, just a month after announcing plans to expand its use of artificial intelligence. Vermont Information Processing, which employs about 600 people in the state, announced the cuts to staff in a series of company meetings.
It’s not clear how many employees will lose their positions. The company did not reveal that in a statement to Seven Days.
The move appears to be a real-world example of the potential job losses that the rapid expansion of AI portends for segments of the workforce.
Founded in 1972, VIP helps beverage distributors such as breweries, wineries and soda bottlers improve sales and tracking data. Just last year, private equity firm Warburg Pincus purchased the company in what Reuters reported was a $1 billion deal. That led to windfall checks for workers enrolled in an employee stock-ownership plan. Some learned they would get as much as $10 million.
This year, the company has leaned into AI technology, including by holding an “AI Week” in April that showed it was “investing in its workforce to upskill in AI.” The initiative was intended to help employees “gain skills in AI software and prompting” to solve complex business problems. The company offered awards and cash prizes as incentives.
The embrace of AI continued after that, according to an employee who participated in one of the mandatory sessions Tuesday.
“There’s been a big push company-wide in the last couple months to at all times try to teach different AI tools how to do your job,” the employee said.
Last month, VIP acquired Encompass Technologies, an AI-focused beverage industry software firm headquartered in Fort Collins, Colo. VIP promoted the sale as a way for it to “accelerate AI innovation across the food & beverage industry.”
The employee said the meeting they attended included a presentation by CEO Andrew Criezis that was devoid of specifics such as how many people are losing their jobs. Criezis referred to making the company more efficient and “product oriented,” said the employee, who asked not to be identified.
“They kind of made it seem like there were too many cooks in the kitchen and they wanted a streamlined approach where AI was front and center,” the employee recalled.
Vermont firms that plan to lay off more than 50 workers have to inform the state at least 45 days beforehand. A Vermont Department of Labor spokesperson confirmed it had received such a notice from VIP, but did not make details available Tuesday.
The company sent Seven Days a statement late Tuesday afternoon that shed little light on its actions. It reads:
VIP is transitioning to a Product-Led Organization, the purpose of this new organizational model is to create clear ownership of products, strengthen accountability, and enable the company to focus resources and investments that are the highest priority across all of VIP and its customers. Following a review of our organizational structure and business priorities to support this product-led transition, VIP made the difficult decision to reduce the size of certain teams. We are grateful for the contributions of our impacted colleagues and are supporting them through this transition.
These changes reflect evolving business needs and a broader effort to better align our teams and resources with our customers’ needs and long-term priorities. VIP remains focused on investing in its people, products and technology to support continued innovation and deliver value to our customers.
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