Bob Swan

eBay has made billions reinventing ways to sell items on the internet. Now, in the face of declining growth, the company must reinvent itself once more. Facing stiff competition and the declining growth of its auctions business, eBay announced a shake-up of the company on Wednesday, saying it planned to cut 2,400 positions, or 7 percent of its global workforce. "It's going to get a little bit worse before it gets better," said Bob Swan, chief financial officer of eBay, citing declines of traffic and repeat customers in the company's online auction business. 

eBay's revenue grew 29 percent in the first quarter year-over-year to $3.3 billion, and net income grew 20 percent to $570 million. The company released first quarter 2012 earnings on Wednesday, and eBay CEO John Donahoe sounded upbeat on a post-earnings conference call with Wall Street analysts. Donahoe said eBay's PayPal unit was focused on innovation and the eBay Marketplaces business had turned the corner, shifting from "defense" to "offense." He also said there would be a "steady stream of product enhancements on eBay" this year.