Microsoft has commenced another round of layoffs that will see around 9,000 employees let go, marking its second major job cut this year as the tech giant intensifies efforts to streamline operations and manage costs.
The latest cuts will affect about 4% of Microsoft’s total global workforce, which stood at 228,000 as of June 2024.
According to a Bloomberg report citing the company spokesperson, the layoffs will span across various teams, geographies, and levels of seniority.
Cutting management layers
The move, according to the company, is part of broader organizational changes aimed at simplifying internal processes and reducing management layers.
“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company and teams for success in a dynamic marketplace,” the spokesperson said.
- The layoffs were first reported by Bloomberg, which noted that the affected units include Microsoft’s sales division, particularly salespeople, and teams under its Xbox gaming arm.
- This follows an earlier round of 6,000 job cuts in May, which largely impacted product and engineering roles.
- Microsoft typically undertakes organizational restructuring near the end of its fiscal year, which closes in June. The company employs approximately 45,000 people in sales and marketing alone.
In a related development, Judson Althoff, Microsoft’s Chief Commercial Officer and head of global sales, is expected to begin a two-month sabbatical in July.
Microsoft has clarified that his leave was pre-planned and he will return in September.
Tech layoffs in 2025
The wave of layoffs in the global tech industry that started in 2023 has continued into 2025, with big tech companies slashing their workforce as they restructure.
Earlier in April this year, Alphabet-owned Google laid off hundreds of employees in its Platforms and Devices division, a move that affected teams behind Android software, Pixel phones, and the Chrome browser.
At the time, a Google spokesperson said the layoffs were part of efforts to become nimbler and operate more effectively after merging the Platforms and Devices teams, alongside a voluntary exit program offered in January.
- According to data from Layoffs.fyi, an independent layoff tracker, over 27,000 tech employees had been laid off between January and April this year.
- The report shows that February alone accounted for 16,084 of the job losses, making it the worst-hit month in the first quarter.
- These new figures come on the heels of a turbulent 2024, during which more than 150,000 jobs were slashed across 549 tech companies worldwide.
As cost-cutting remains a priority for many firms grappling with economic uncertainty and rising investment in artificial intelligence, industry watchers expect the downsizing trend to persist across several major platforms.
