Microsoft planning companywide job cuts, Business Insider reports

Investing.com– Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is planning to cut jobs across the company and is adopting a harder stance on underperforming employees, Business Insider reported on Tuesday. 

A spokesperson for the company confirmed plans to cut jobs, the Business Insider report said, but did not specify the scale of the cuts. The report also said that the company had likely backfilled the roles, presenting few changes to Microsoft’s overall headcount. 

The firm had roughly 228,000 employees as of June 2024. 

Microsoft enacted a series of job cuts over the past two years, with several reductions aimed at its underperforming gaming division. 

The company fired around 10,000 people in 2023, and cut another 4000 roles in 2024. 

The layoffs came amid similar moves from several of Microsoft’s peers, as the technology industry grappled with high interest rates and slowing investment since late-2022. 

But the artificial intelligence boom is expected to somewhat offset this trend, with Microsoft having invested billions of dollars in shoring up its AI offerings. 

The company did not respond immediately to a mailed request for comment.