Microsoft layoffs have impacted some employees across the Xbox division, and the Strategic Missions and Technology organization. Still, the overall Microsoft staff cuts hit fewer than 1,000 employees at the cloud services and software giant, Business Insider reported.
Also of important note: The job cuts apparently impacted fewer than 1% of Microsoft's overall global workforce of roughly 180,000 employees. It's unclear whether the layoffs touched the company's partner organization and/or various security teams. Microsoft in July 2022 slowed its hiring in the Azure and security business units, though cloud and cybersecurity certainly remain top priorities for the company.
Describing the October 2022 job cuts, a Microsoft spokesperson told Business Insider:
"Like all companies, we evaluate our business priorities on a regular basis, and make structural adjustments accordingly. We will continue to invest in our business and hire in key growth areas in the year ahead."
Related: See all technology industry layoffs listed here.
Big Technology Companies: Some Targeted Layoffs
The apparent layoffs surface after Google paused hiring, while Oracle and Salesforce trimmed some jobs in early October 2022. Looking ahead, it sounds like Intel is set to cut thousands of positions — perhaps as soon as later this month, Bloomberg reported. Elsewhere:
- Amazon is cutting experimental businesses.
- Facebook parent Meta is pulling some job offers and may have thousands of layoffs, Insider said.
Clearly, a potential recession remains front-of-mind for a growing number of technology companies. Among the wildcards: As job cuts extend from IT giants to startups, will employers regain the upper hand against employees who increasingly worked from home, quietly quit or jumped from job to job during the pandemic?
MSPs: Doing Well, But Not Recession Proof
Meanwhile, the MSP sector appears healthy. And some pundits believe midmarket and enterprise IT layoffs could empower MSPs to offer more co-managed services. Still, the MSP market is not immune to a recession.
