Microsoft stated it has fired 6,000 workers “at all levels, teams and geographies.”

One of the impacted directors of AI has vented on X about the “bittersweet news”. In her update, she described how the employees that were let go were “asked to stop work immediately”.

In what has been Microsoft’s biggest round of layoffs since 2023, the company chose to lay off 6,000 workers, which represents roughly 3% of its staff.

Gabriela de Queiroz who served as director or AI in Microsoft. (X/@gdequeiroz)

Gabriela de Queiroz who served as director or AI in Microsoft. (X/@gdequeiroz)

“Bittersweet news to share: I was affected by Microsoft’s recent round of layoffs,” Gabriela de Queiroz posted.

Her LinkedIn profile states she came on board at Microsoft in 2022 as a “Principal Cloud Advocate” and worked for eight months before taking on the “Director of AI – Microsoft for Startups” position in 2023.

In a post on the same thread, Queiroz explained that she is sad to see “so many talented people I’ve had the honor of working with being let go.”

She added, “These are people who cared deeply, went above and beyond, and truly made a difference.”

How was she fired from Microsoft?

“We were told to stop work instantly and put on an out-of-office. I decided to remain a bit longer—attending meetings, farewell, completing the things I could.

She went on to say, “I’m an optimist at heart. That hasn’t changed. My smile, my gratitude, my belief that each day is a gift—that’s all still here.”
She ended her post with a message for those impacted by the layoffs:

“To those also impacted—you’re not alone. We are at least 6,000.”

That sounded appropriate to me,” she added.

How did people respond on social media?

Someone wrote, “Sorry to hear this, but I know something even better is in store. You’re destined for great things!” Someone else chimed in, “I’m sorry. I wasn’t affected, but I lost a lot of close individuals I’ve worked with for years. It was a tough day for sure. Good luck to you.”

A third added, “Looks like a lot of old timers are affected.” A fourth stated, “If the Director of AI at Msft can be let go, then nobody’s safe in today’s market.”

“We continue to make organizational changes needed to best position the company for success in an evolving marketplace,” a Microsoft representative said, as reported by CNBC.

As per the outlet, by the end of June 2024, the company had 228,000 employees worldwide.

Microsoft on Tuesday announced that it’s cutting 3% of workers at all levels, teams and geographies, impacting around 6,000 individuals.

“We are continuing to make organizational adjustments needed to position the company for success in a changing marketplace,” a Microsoft representative stated

The company posted stronger-than-expected results, with $25.8 billion of quarterly net income, and an optimistic outlook in late April.

Microsoft employed 228,000 people globally at the close of June.

Tuesday Washington state announced the company was cutting headcount associated with its Redmond headquarters by 1,985 individuals, with 1,510 based in office.

Overall, it’s probably Microsoft’s biggest round of layoffs since the removal of 10,000 jobs in 2023.

In January, the company revealed a small round of performance-based layoffs. The new job cuts are not performance-based, the spokesperson explained.

Last week cybersecurity software company CrowdStrike
declared that it would dismiss 5% of its staff.

During January, Microsoft chief Satya Nadella informed analysts that the business would institute changes to sales execution after the firm posted less than expected growth on Azure cloud sales not based on artificial intelligence. AI cloud expansion outpaced expectations within the business.

How do you actually adjust the incentives, go-to-market?”

Nadella asked. “During a time of platform change, you sort of want to make sure you lean into even the new design wins, and you just don’t continue to do the things that you did in the last generation.”

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One goal is to eliminate layers of management, the spokesperson added.

In January Amazon said it was eliminating some staff after observing “unnecessary layers” in its structure.

Microsoft shares closed on Monday at $449.26, the highest this year. They closed at an all-time high of $467.56 last July.