Following layoffs of 11,000 workers in November 2022, Facebook parent company Meta announced on March 14 that it would let go of an additional 10,000 employees, or approximately 13% of its workforce. CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed that the company also would close 5,000 open job postings as part of what he calls the “Year of Efficiency” in a Facebook post announcing the cuts.
“The goals of this work are: (1) to make us a better technology company and (2) to improve our financial performance in a difficult environment so we can execute our long term vision,” Zuckerberg wrote in his post. He also provided a rough timeline for the job cuts: “We expect to announce restructurings and layoffs in our tech groups in late April, and then our business groups in late May. In a small number of cases, it may take through the end of the year to complete these changes.”
Zuckerberg also revealed Meta’s commitment to one of today’s hottest technologies, AI: “Our single largest investment is in advancing AI and building it into every one of our products. We have the infrastructure to do this at unprecedented scale and I think the experiences it enables will be amazing.”
Meta is hardly alone among tech companies (and a number of retailers) in trimming its staff after ramping up hiring in response to ecommerce and app usage growth during the COVID-19 pandemic:
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- In August 2022 Alibaba reportedly had cut 10,000 jobs;
- In November 2022, Amazon reportedly planned to trim its workforce by up to 10,000 employees
- In January 2023 Google parent Alphabet announced plans to cut 12,000 jobs and sharpen its focus on AI offerings; and
- Microsoft warned of plans to make 10,000 job cuts in a January SEC filing.
Zuckerberg’s post outlined his vision for a flatter, more agile organization, titling one section “Leaner is better.” Saying the company would cancel “duplicative or lower priority” projects, he wrote: “A leaner org will execute its highest priorities faster. People will be more productive, and their work will be more fun and fulfilling. We will become an even greater magnet for the most talented people.”
