Microsoft to Eliminate Up to 18K Jobs Over Next Year By Victoria CraigPublished July 17, 2014FOXBusiness Microsoft Redmond Campus MICROSOFT In a letter to employees early Thursday, Microsoft (MSFT) CEO Satya Nadella said the tech giant will slash its workforce by as many as 18,000 jobs over the course of the next year, with the first round of 13,000 cuts coming within the next six months. The move comes after Nadella hinted at changes coming to the blue-chip software company in remarks made earlier in the week. The workforce elimination is what Nadella calls the first step to “building the right organization for our ambitions.” The first round of cuts will hit the Nokia Devices and Services unit, which will account for a loss of 12,500 jobs for professional and factory workers. He added, though, while the company is reducing the size of its current workforce, it also plans to add roles in certain strategic areas. “My promise to you is that we will go through this process in the most thoughtful and transparent way possible,” Nadella said in a statement Thursday. He added these decisions are “difficult, but necessary” for Microsoft, and offered to those whose jobs are eliminated, severance and help with the transition will be available. A Focus on Innovation In his letter, the Microsoft chief said the job cuts are primarily driven by a desire to make the work environment simpler, and drive more strategic alignment with the company’s Nokia Devices and Services Unit, which was acquired last year by the tech titan. That unit of the business is where most of the cuts will happen as the company moves to integrate those teams into the broader Microsoft organization. Nadella briefly outlined the way in which the integration will happen and the goals of the move, stressing a move to win in the higher price points by focusing on innovation that will help rejuvenate Microsoft’s digital work and life experiences. Additionally, he said a plan is in the works to shift some Nokia X product designs to run Windows to build on the success the company has seen in the smartphone space, with a focus on Windows Universal Apps. In order to make all of these plans happen, Nadella said Microsoft must become a more agile company that has the ability to move faster by reducing the managerial layers throughout the company to help drive more creativity and enhance the decision-making processes. But the changes won’t just affect Microsoft’s employees, but its vendor staff as well. “This includes flattening organizations and increasing the span of control of people managers,” he said. “In addition, our business process and support models will be more lean and efficient with greater trust between teams.” Follow Victoria Craig on Twitter @VictoriaCraig.
Posted on: Thu, 17 Jul 2014 14:09:02 +0000
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