Snap hit with more layoffs, plans to slow hiring in 2018 (SNAP)

Evan Spiegel

Eighteen people have been laid off from Snap's recruiting division.
More cuts are expected as managers institute a new system for evaluating employee performance.
In an email to employees last month, CEO Evan Spiegel said the company would slow its hiring rate next year.

Snapchat parent company Snap Inc. has been hit with more layoffs as management evaluates trimming headcount across different teams.

Eighteen employees were laid off in the company's recruiting division this week, according to people familiar with the matter. A Snap representative confirmed the cuts to Business Insider on Friday but declined to comment further.

Snap is also planning to slow its hiring next year. In an email sent to employees last month — Business Insider saw parts of the email — CEO Evan Spiegel said the company would hire at a "slower rate" in 2018 and that leaders would be asked to make "hard decisions" about their teams and employees who aren't performing well.

Snap laid off roughly a dozen people supporting the hardware division that makes its Spectacles camera glasses last month, as we previously reported. People close to the company said that more cuts could be made as managers institute a new system for evaluating employee performance. Six-year-old Snap hasn't implemented a consistent way to track and evaluate employee performance to date, the people said.

Snap's headcount has ballooned rapidly over the past two years, from 600 employees at the end of 2015 to 2,600 last quarter.

Snap's stock is down roughly 28% in the past six months. Investors question its ability to grow revenue under mounting competition from Facebook.

Do you know more about what's happening at Snap? Contact the author securely and discreetly via Twitter DM or email at aheath@businessinsider.com.

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