Salesforce is adding 4,000 jobs over the next six months and 12,000 over the next year, the company’s CEO said over the weekend. 

Marc Benioff made the announcement over Twitter and called for potential candidates to send their resumes to Salesforce. 

The announcement could come as a big relief to some 1,000 employees who were told their jobs were being axed in August. Those affected were given 60 days to find a new role within the business, despite Salesforce recording revenue gains following a better than expected second quarter. 

At the time, Salesforce said it was “reallocating resources” to keep the company growing, suggesting that the actual number of employees leaving the firm would be a lot less as they move to other positions. 

The firm currently employs almost 54,000 workers around the world and has adopted a largely flexible strategy since the outbreak of COVID-19. In March, Benioff pledged not to lay off any staff off for 90 days and urged other CEOs to do the same.

The 1,000 job cuts came as soon as that period ended, but there is now a possibility that very few of the 1,000 will actually be made redundant. 

“Salesforce will add 4,000 jobs over the next 6 months & 12,000 over the next year,” Benioff wrote on Twitter. “Join our 54,000 employee strong Ohana defining the future of software. Salesforce is the world’s fastest-growing Top 5 enterprise software company. Send your resume to jobs@salesforce.com.”

The cloud giant declined to provide any more details about the hiring spree – specifically where and what these jobs will be – though it did suggest further details will be released soon. Whatever form they take, the 16,000 newly created jobs will be a huge relief to many during what is a particularly tough time. The impact of the coronavirus has had a rapid impact on the global job market, cutting many traditional and on-site roles.    

In August, Salesforce’s financial officer Mark Hawkins said the company was making “strategic shifts” that reflected how and where people now work as a result of the pandemic. 

“This means we’ll be redirecting some of our resources to fuel growth and areas that are no longer as aligned with the business priority will be de-emphasised,” he said.