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Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

blogs.microsoft.com

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Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#261

Post by foobiekr »

gorjusborg wrote: post #39
sbarre wrote: post #10

They're spreading it out over the full year. Interesting that they would announce it up front like this? What does this do to morale and retention?

Could be a big brain move, or a micro brain one. Big brain: I'm telegraphing that we'll be letting lots of people go so they will self-select and we won't have to fire as many. I imagine that someone could have this idea, but I doubt it benefits the company in practice. Micro brain: 'If you have not received notice that are are affected, your are safe! Resume being 100% productive until you receive notice that you ar…

It depends on your circumstances. I had months of sleepless nights when I survived the sequential layoffs at the company where I was working, trying to work out what I could do to secure my wife and I, but had I actually been laid off the theoretical would have been real. I knew good people who were out of work for a year. Not bad people, people generally considered very solid.

If I was laid off tomorrow, though, it would be a relief and I could call it a day.

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#262

Post by pyuser583 »

petilon wrote: post #236
pyuser583 wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All employees get 60 days notice, so it seems like there will be 30 days of uncertainty. Maybe I'm optimistic.

That's not how it works. You won't be told 60 days before you are let go. You will be let go and then given pay for 60 days.

> 60 days’ notice prior to termination

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#264

Post by projectazorian »

incrudible wrote: post #158
jonathankoren wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They’re laying people off because it’s cool to lay people off. Layoffs are social, not economical. https://news.stanford.edu/2022/12/05/explains-recent-tech-la...

If the evidence suggested that periodic layoffs are good for company longevity and profit margins, you can bet that none of these academics would shout it from the rooftops. Moreover, none of the evidence was collected under the current economic environment, where a decade of cheap money and growth fantasies have fueled an unsustainable hiring frenzy.

> If the evidence suggested that periodic layoffs are good for company longevity and profit margins, you can bet that none of these academics would shout it from the rooftops.

Have you ever taken an economics class? Plenty of economists take a perverse glee in claiming that things like the minimum wage and child labor laws are detrimental, I don’t think that “sometimes layoffs are good” is a taboo point.

And that’s before we get into discussing business school professors…

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#265

Post by DarkNova6 »

SahAssar wrote: post #247
DarkNova6 wrote: post #178

> Could there be a tech recession? Yes. Was there a bubble in valuations? Absolutely. Did Meta overhire? Probably. I'm glad we agree > But is that why they are laying people off? Of course not. Meta has plenty of money. These companies are all making money. How does this follow any logic at all. He does not even dispute that overhiring took place. Should companies continue with a stupid hiring frenzy until they run o…

What are you quoting? Neither this thread nor the article says these quotes.

it is in the article

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#266

Post by rk06 »

photonbeam wrote: post #30
thr0w4w4ymsft wrote: post #2

MSFT manager of 25+ person team here with no actual heads up on this. The writing has been on the wall for months though from internal comms so this should come as a surprise to no one. No one on my team has any information about this beyond the Satya email, so this is either a "no news is good news" situation (assuming you don't actually want to be laid off), or a poorly executed process. I'm hoping for the former f…

> The writing has been on the wall for months though from internal comms What did the hints look like?

Cost cutting. Move to floating desk and reduction in building space. There were few more things. But the shift to floating seats was a big indicator that serious cost cutting is happening. And everyone guessed that layoffs are next.

I am based in India. US folks would have seen different signs

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#267

Post by bennyelv »

hprotagonist wrote: post #72
Sebb767 wrote: post #34

While there is no good way to do a mass-layoff, I don't particularly like the way this was communicated. There's a lot of flowery language and the fact that there will be massive layoffs is only said in passing in the third paragraph. This will never be good news, obviously, but please communicate the important facts clearly.

10k is ~5% of FTEs. Not nothing, but not 20%, either.

It would be interesting to see how it compares to the average natural employee churn in a year - I expect it is significantly less.

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#268

Post by bennyelv »

Cthulhu_ wrote: post #98
jstx1 wrote: post #3

> When I think about this moment in time, the start of 2023, it’s showtime – for our industry and for Microsoft. He could have left that part out.

I mean I don't understand the big announcement in the first place; with a company that large, reducing staff count by 10K can be done organically, simply by not hiring replacements. Which makes me think of two things; one, they want to get rid of very specific people, people who wouldn't quit on their own. And two, that they can't just reduce staff count without an announcement, because staff count is one of those me…

I suspect it’s because they want the reduction focused in specific areas and on the low performers.

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#269

Post by stevefan1999 »

jsiepkes wrote: post #65

Satya is appointed by shareholders, not by employees. Employees can't fire Satya. And while employees might give him a hard time for this, shareholders can definitely give him a harder time if they see a (potential) decline in dividend. So cutting cost to keep dividends steady with a decline in profitability and revenue is the easiest fight for him. While it sucks, when working for a large tech company which is publi…

so you mean hes an agent of blackrock all this time

Re: Microsoft to lay off 10k workers

#270

Post by ckdarby »

candiodari wrote: post #235
jsiepkes wrote: post #65

Satya is appointed by shareholders, not by employees. Employees can't fire Satya. And while employees might give him a hard time for this, shareholders can definitely give him a harder time if they see a (potential) decline in dividend. So cutting cost to keep dividends steady with a decline in profitability and revenue is the easiest fight for him. While it sucks, when working for a large tech company which is publi…

He just spent 1.2 billion dollars. He could have given every last one of those 10k people 2 YEARS to get retrained for that amount. That's enough time for a new bachelor's degree.

Those 10k in this case appear to be the low performing or team shutdowns where transferring doesn't make sense.

5% headcount reduction is attainable just by freezing hiring and letting churn happen and performance management.

With nearly any company I've seen employees who can dodge performance but are a low performing employee. It drags down their team, and makes your high performers quit.

Layoffs like this might not even have front line managers input aside from, "who is critical to keeping the lights on in the company". All those things that have helped an employee avoid being PIP'ed out are gone.

The managers who I've talked to in these situations will almost always pick their high performing individuals regardless, because they know if they don't they'll be cut next due to poor performing team.

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