Microsoft has been gone to undergone the several rounds of the layoffs in recent years as company realigns on its business and it shifts focus to the cloud computing and other major areas. The largest of these layoffs was occurred in 2014, when Microsoft has announced the plans to cutoff 18,000 jobs, primarily in its Nokia Devices and the Services division following with the acquisition of Nokia's smartphone business.
In 2019, The Microsoft has announced the plans to cut jobs in its sales and the marketing division as it seeks to "streamline and flattenn the organization." In recent year 2020, Microsoft made additional layoffs, citing the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on its business. On that time company did not specify the number on jobs cut, but the reports indicate that several thousand employees were affected on that year.
It is very important to make the note that Microsoft has also been hiring in the areas such as cloud computing and the artificial intelligence, and the company's overall workforce has hence continued to grow despite the several layoffs. However, the layoffs have been criticized by some of the disruptive and painful for affected employees and for their families as well.
In general, the layoffs are at common practice in the technology industry, as the companies seek to stay competitive and adjust to changes in the market. However, they can have also have a significant impact on employees and other communities, and companies must be approach layoffs with sensitivity and support for affected workers as well.
Layoff's from the Microsoft have been the result of the combination of factors, which including the company's ongoing effort for the streamline and its business and shift its focus to new areas of growth. For example, the 2014 layoffs were largely has a result of the company's acquisition of Nokia's smartphone business, which is required by the consolidation and restructuring of the combined workforce.
The 2019 layoffs were the part of a crucial broader effort by the company to simplify of its sales and marketing the organization and increase the efficiency. The COVID-19 pandemic has also played a role in the 2020 layoffs, as the pandemic had a very negative impact on the global economy and it's disrupted many businesses, including the Microsoft. The company stated the layoffs were necessary to ensure its long-term financial health and also competitiveness.
It is also the worth noting that form while Microsoft has undergone layoffs, the company has also been hiring in areas such as the cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and the many other strategic initiatives. Despite the layoffs, Microsoft's overall workforce has been continued to grow very large, and the company remains one of the largest employers in the technology industry also.
Overall, Microsoft's has been the layoffs are part of the very company's ongoing efforts to remain the competitive and respond to changes in market. However, these layoffs can also have crucial significant impact on the affected employees and their families, and the company must to be approach them with sensitivity and the support for its only workforce.
