#tech industry layoffs

[iww-gnv]

The entire game industry is still reeling from yesterday's bombshell announcement that Microsoft—hot on the heels of its $69 billion acquisition of Activision—would be laying off 1,900 employees across Activision-Blizzard and Xbox. Inevitably, Twitter is awash with reactions highlighting the human cost, both from dazed devs waking up in a world in which they no longer have jobs, and from others wondering what this all means for the months and years ahead. The posts by former Blizzard devs are too many to count. "After years of applying," wrote former QA learning specialist Cole McElwain in a much-retweeted post, "I finally secure a job at Blizzard. I move to California and am welcomed with an incredible team. I couldn't be more excited to start… "Four months into the job, I'm laid off. What the hell, Microsoft?"

[the-gamer-geek-lounge-blog]

The wait is over! XBox's Phil Spencer has finally given a response to the questions about the future of XBox, including their GamePass, Cloud, and Exclusivity!

On today's XBox Podcast, Phil informed us that XBox will have 4 games, each over 1 year old, going to other platforms. All other games will remain exclusives, including Starfield and Indiana Jones. Phil didn't update us on which games will be jumping platforms, but he stated that they are community driven games and the purpose is to reach as many players as possible. This is something I can completely agree with.

Phil went on to state that his focus is the long-term grown of XBox as a while and that they want to bring these 4 games to multiple platforms in order to help grow the franchises. I can agree with this statement and idea. Honestly, I think exclusives are great to bring more customers to your hardware...but overall, I don't agree with keeping former 3rd party games as console exclusives, such as the upcoming HELLBLADE 2.

The team made sure to tell viewers that their primary focus will remain on XBox (console and games), PC, and Cloud. The point of releasing these 4 games on XBox is in hopes to reach the biggest audience of players, while also sparking interest in XBox itself. Since GamePass will remain exclusive to XBox itself, all console and Windows PC owners can breathe a sigh of relief.

I agree with XBox's strategy of wanting to bring more cross-play, cross-progression, and cross-save to their games. I know that I am a huge fan of remote play services. If I can hop on my PlayStation from my vacation spot or visit with family, I'm all set. Same goes for if I have my PC...I can hit up my XBox content. I love being able to play on my iPad by connecting to my consoles, etc.

We even got an update on Activision Blizzard that puts Diablo IV on GamePass on March 28th. So with all of the updates, I wonder how XBox fans feel after weeks of discouragement and feeling betrayed by the XBox brand. Let me know what you think!

[reversedout-blog]

Technology Startups Are Laying People Off. How Can Your Company Benefit From The Purging Of Talent?

There’s an old saying that goes, “When it rains, it pours.” For a tech company, this saying feels like a reality. With so many companies competing for talent, tech companies often have to lay off people in order to have enough money to keep their business running smoothly. But what does this mean for their competitors? How can your company benefit from the purging of talent?

Layoffs Are a Reality of the Tech Economy.

As the tech economy slows, startups are laying off employees in droves. This is a sign of both the downturn of the economy and an end to the tech boom.

In a more serious tone: layoffs are part of your company’s business plan. They should not be treated as optional or avoidable; rather you should expect them to happen and plan for them accordingly.

What Happens to Employees When They Are Laid Off?

When an employee is laid off from a company, it’s not just the employee that is affected. Family members and friends may also be impacted. Friendships are strained and family relationships are strained, as well; you don’t want to be the one who is still working while everyone else in your life has been laid off.

But what happens when you lose your job? How do you cope with being laid off? You might feel shocked or angry, or even sad. You might feel confused about what happened and why it happened to you. And if it’s temporary (which most layoffs appear to be), then there will always be that uncertainty in the back of your mind: Will I get another job? Where will I find another job? Is this going to affect my career trajectory negatively? What happens next?

These questions can cause stress on their own—but when combined with other factors like paying bills or supporting a family financially, these questions become even more stressful for those who have lost their jobs recently because of companies cutting costs due to poor performance or cash flow problems.

Why You Should Move Fast and Hire Talent from Recently Laid-Off Companies.

Although it’s a tough time for companies and employees, there are some positive benefits for you.

Talent is abundant, and the market is no longer an employer’s market. Historically, companies were in control of finding talent, but now that power has shifted to employees. There are many talented people looking for jobs right now—and they know it! This means that you can hire talented people at a lower cost than before.

Talent is more likely to be motivated since they are looking for work. The motivation factor plays into your favor during this period of unemployment because these workers tend to be interested in new opportunities and ready to jump on board with a new company if yours has something exciting going on or if it offers better career development than what they had previously been working at.

Less likely burned out by current situation (typically).

The Economic Downturn May Pave the Way for Opportunities in a Diverse Labor Pool.

The downturn has created a more diverse labor pool. Recruiters and hiring managers have learned that they need to go beyond the usual suspects when searching for talent. They’re looking at people who have been laid off, re-entering the workforce after taking time off or going back to school, and even those with no experience but an eagerness to learn. This is especially true in technology startups where candidates are often considered based on their potential rather than past performance.

The downturn has also made it easier for companies to hire from outside their immediate area—which means you may find yourself competing against local companies who are willing to pay more but don’t necessarily offer better benefits or opportunities for growth than your company does. The key here is opportunity cost: If a candidate accepts another employer’s offer of employment at $4 per hour less than yours, then you have lost out on four hours’ worth of productivity each day until he or she gets trained up enough that they’re worth paying regular wages again (assuming there’s no shortage of qualified workers).

We live in a new world, where layoffs are common and talent is abundant, and it’s no longer an employer’s market.

The internet has made it easier to find talent, and this means that employers have to work harder than ever before.

First of all, there’s the simple fact that more people are looking for jobs than ever before. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that there were 6 million job openings in the United States in 2017—that’s about 3% higher than in 2016. And there are even more people looking for jobs outside of traditional employment channels: freelancers make up about a third (32%) of US workers according to Pew Research Center research.

This means two things for employers: 1) More competition for talent; and 2) A more informed search process where employees have access to information about their potential employer through Google searches or social media accounts before they ever apply.

Conclusion

Shifts in the tech industry are happening fast, and you can’t afford to wait for the next wave. If anything, your tech company should be ahead of it. The economic downturn has created new opportunities for businesses to thrive—and hiring from recently laid-off companies is a great way to start. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at Reversed Out Creative.

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Content source: https://reversedout.com/crowdfunding-for-your-small-business-reg-cf/

[ominaterthegreat]

My sister, who spent four years at Mailchimp, just got laid off yesterday. She called me sobbing to let me know she got the email. No amount of a fat severance package can fix the damage to her psyche this job did imo. Her birthday is coming up soon. So i made her this cake.

(i only decorate a cake like once every few years lol don't come for me)

She started in customer support, and sure enough was skilled and talented enough in apprenticeships with a higher up team in a different department that she was happily brought onto the team.

She ran events, improved entire workflows that saved the company thousands of dollars, delivered tasks on time and of high quality, and was highly praised by leaders of other teams and from those above her boss. She kicked ass and took names.

On that team, she spent two years experiencing bullying and discrimination for having ADHD. Yes, arguably the most common ND condition out there just about. She had to take 2 months off for mental health leave to get her ADHD diagnosis to defend herself from all the corporate bullying. She documented her boss literally making things up and her coworker refusing to communicate with her and then blaming her for things not being done how she wanted. They actively ignored all the times she went above and beyond expectations and all the times she did receive praise from other teams. I watched two corporate goons crush the confidence my sister had finally closed together for herself.

The CEO of Intuit called her and 1800 other employees that were laid off "low performers" in a public statement. A convenient 10% of Mailchimp was completely laid off. We knew this was coming because over the past year or so, Intuit has been forcing managers to label a specific percentage of people as "Does Not Meet Expectations" on year end reviews to justify letting people go, no matter how much they actually did meet expectations.

I look in the Intuit Mailchimp tags and only see one post about them Union busting. The only posts are just geared towards companies comparing and contrasting products and marketing strategies. Reddit isn't much better because the only sub on there is the official one modded by MC themselves. This isn't the biggest fire rn by any means but it's once again proof that the people behind these corporations are as soulless and evil as the corporations themselves. No matter how much good you do they will never appreciate you.

I hope the company eats shit and dies. Intuit is ruining everything people liked about MC, from the product to the culture. Fuck you.

[hasufin]

On trend

So, something that I'm sure is pretty obvious but I really only thought to put it together recently is, there's a reason we see entire industries do layoffs all around the same time. And specifically why it always seems like it's a "jumping on the bandwagon" thing, where one company will lay people off, then there's a pause, and a couple more, and then the rest seem to shrug and go "Yeah, I guess I'll do it too."

It's not because the industry is suddenly unable to sustain all the people it used to employ. In fact, I'd say it has little if anything to do with revenue or market size.

What we're seeing is, in the current parlance, social contagion, with a big ol' helping of opportunism.

What I suspect is, you get a company which decides they want to juice their stock price - like Cisco did to more easily buy an AI company. Now there's blood in the water. And that's important.

The thing is, layoffs are deeply demoralizing. Employees, reasonably, hate them. It's a big factor in getting people - especially the most knowledgeable, productive people - to jump ship. That's not something companies want, though. They want to reduce headcount on their terms, for their reasons, and their convenience. Not the employees, who are supposed to have no say in this process.

Which means, in good economic times, companies are reluctant to do layoffs. It scares away the people they want to keep.

But!

If other employers in the industry are also doing layoffs, then where will the employees go? If I work for Juniper, and they're rumbling about layoffs, why don't I apply to Cisco? Oh, because they're laying off people too! So I'll stay at Juniper - even if they're suddenly asking me to take on the workload of two other people. Because I need an income, and I don't have any other options.

Unfortunately, I don't know of any cure for this. I mean, unions because they give employees a voice. And it would be fucking hilarious to see one of these companies who treat their employees like toilet paper actually hurt by their bullshit.

But lacking that, I'd say... remember how they treated you in the "bad times". Remember that the "bad times" are manufactured to give an excuse to treat you like shit. And remember you owe your employer nothing that isn't covered by your paycheck.

[soapdispensersalesman]

[thecontainerstoreofficial]

i had to spend all of college getting smug, condescending warnings from comp sci people that my english major was “unemployable” and oh look how smart they are for choosing a major with such good job opportunities. and now graduation as come and gone and me and my strong humanities background, complex reasoning skills, and carefully honed writing ability have a living-wage, fulfilling job on a prestigious career track. and a lot of those comp sci majors are unemployed because the market has shit itself. its almost like the economic future is in some ways a black box and you should do what you like and are good at rather than hanging all your hopes on the assumption that the job market in 2019 will be the same as the job market in 2024

[herawell]

.

[rainesramblings]

Happy New Year

Happy New Year, cogs in the wheel

Workers that have no right to feel

We are laying you off because of business needs

We are sorry but that’s how we lead

We are streamlining processes, that’s what we say

To find a new job, you have 60 days

The long-term strategy two years ago

Are now in the dump, but that, we won’t show

We made millions last year

But the investors instilled fear

We need to make more, more, more

And to meet that, some of you are showed the door

Thanks for your work, we got what we want

We’re taking credit for your savant

Corporate waits for no one

Gonna chase the money, we’ll never be done.

[iww-gnv]

Technical artist Farhan Noor’s website, Video Games Layoffs, has been tracking confirmed games industry job cuts since the start of last year. According to the site, an estimated total of 10,500 game industry workers lost their jobs in 2023. At the time of writing, the estimated total for 2024 on the same site currently stands at 3,770.

[inflagrante-delicatessen]

I think two other things that happened in the Disney-Florida relationship are important for context:

Pretty much contemporaneously with the initial DSG bill, Disney opened/was opening a massive facility for its (mostly IT) employees. iirc, it was something like 75k estimated jobs.

Disney's employees kept going on strike/protesting for like an hour/day for a week during the period of time between "Disney donated/backs Desantis and therefore DSG" and "Bob Iger does a PR statement and walks it back"

Disney vs. DeSantis is so funny because it's like. Neither side even wanted to get into this. Here's how it's supposed to go: Politician does something stupid. Corporation disavows politician after public pressure. Politician disavows the disavowing. Nothing changes for either party.

But then the Florida governor got stars in his eyes. He saw an opportunity to bolster his standing before the presidential primary. He wanted to be the one who took on The Mouse and won. So in retaliation he decides he's going to tear down the decades-old agreement Disney has to govern Disney World's district.

And just like that, Disney's batshit insane legal department turns towards Florida like the Eye of Sauron spotting the ring at Mount Doom. They smell potential lost profit. They smell blood.

Disney will use any and every strategy they've accumulated over the last century of lobbying congress and DeSantis can't back down lest he admit Mickey Mouse kicked his ass. He lost control of Disney World's district even more than he already had. Now he's getting sued.

This all started because Disney was pressured into backtracking their political contributions to Florida and disavowing the Don't Say Gay law. Now they're fighting for something they actually care about: their profit margin. Disney is not an ally to queer people and they're an enemy to progressives, but damn am I rooting for them to keep humiliating the greater evil for the time being. This is high comedy.

[wat3rm370n]

The Immorality of the so-called Job Creators.

SFGATE - 'A lot of demoralized people': Ghost jobs are wreaking havoc on tech workers Recruiters and career coaches say they serve multiple insidious purposes By Ariana Bindman, News Features Reporter Oct 31, 2024 According to a 2024 survey from MyPerfectResume, 81% of recruiters admitted to posting ads for positions that were fake or already filled. While some respondents said employers did it to maintain a presence on job boards and build a talent pool, it’s also used to commit psychological warfare: 25% said ghost jobs helped companies gauge how replaceable their employees were, while 23% said it helped make the company appear more stable during a hiring freeze. Another damning 2024 report from Resume Builder said that 62% companies posted them specifically to make their employees feel replaceable. They also made ads to “trick overworked employees” into believing that more people would be brought on to alleviate their overwhelming workload.

[sheisanimposter]

I think we need to normalize listing relevant books we’ve read in our resumes. A 2 hour LinkedIn training is essentially as effective as watching a documentary and those are totally welcome, but you know what’s way more impressive? Reading an entire textbook on a topic without being assigned to.

It goes both ways too. We used to have mandatory fun chats at the tech company I worked for and I swear every white male higher up I spoke to and asked for career advice or about their backgrounds recommended the same mediocre airport book and I’m absolutely convinced none of them even finished it. If only employers could see that I read the catcher and the rye of tech bro books and actual relevant books of quality 😱

Ty for coming to my ted talk, next time we’ll discuss how portfolios aren’t actually realistic or necessary for half the job ads requiring them and how asking potential employees to have a “self brand” online is actually insane. 🥰

[protect-namine]

tech is both an incredibly privileged industry and also has some really atrocious job security when you're stuck in certain pockets of them

[soapdispensersalesman]

[ujusttry]

Google Layoffs Employees In AI Division Amidst Leadership Changes

Google's AI division faces a shakeup with layoffs. Discover the reasons, the impact on Fitbit execs, and the ripple effect in the evolving tech industry landscape of 2024.

Introduction: Google Layoffs Employees The aim of discussing “Google Layoffs Employees” is to provide a concise yet thorough understanding of recent workforce reductions at Google, particularly within its AI division. The article intends to explore the reasons behind the layoffs, highlight the broader context of reorganization, and examine the implications for both Google and the tech…