Microsoft confirms employee layoffs decision.
CEO of the US based software giant Microsoft, Satya Nadella confirmed that the company is planning to cut as many as 18,000 jobs in the upcoming year. The announcement was expected to be made on July 17, 2014, but the sheer size of the layoff figures was staggering. The majority of the 12,500 cuts will be from the professional and factory positions of the Nokia devices and service division that Microsoft recently acquired.
The software giant added that it is also working towards reducing the first 13,000 positions and care will be taken to notify employees well in advance. Nadella added that making such a decision is always difficult, but is essential. “Making these decisions to change are difficult, but necessary,” said Nadella
Microsoft is focusing on the transformation of its current profile and looking forward to expand its reach beyond its core software licensing business.
The CEO added that the changes are coming at a cost and the job cuts are an evidence to that.
Earlier in July 2014, Nadella had hinted about some big changes in a post which had called for restoration of innovation and more nimble operations. The upcoming layoffs will be the largest ever for Microsoft.
The cuts are also considered as Nadella’s toughest move since he took his post in February 2014. Nadella has cited “simplification of work and streamlining the business” as a reason which prompted the layoffs.
Photo Credits: WSJ
