Microsoft and its “less is more” move (or how to say goodbye with style)
It seems that Redmond decided that 2025 was the year to apply “less is more”, but in a corporate version. According to CNBC, the house of Windows and Xbox will send 3% of its global workforce to unemployment (yes, that’s thousands of people) in what could be its largest labor purge since 2023. The reason? “Position ourselves better in this very dynamic market”, they say with that corporate elegance that only HR departments achieve. Millennial translation: cut back so shareholders keep smiling.
The detail that hurts (and the one that doesn’t)
Here’s the irony: while employees are cleaning their desks, Microsoft’s shares are touching all-time highs (did someone say “capitalism”?). Of course, the spokesperson clarified that this is not due to poor performance, but rather to “reduce management levels”. That is, less bosses, more code… or something like that. The curious thing is that it comes just after Satya Nadella talked about “adjusting incentives” after less than expected growth in the cloud (except in AI, because of course, ChatGPT rules).
As if there was no drama, CrowdStrike (yes, the cybersecurity guys) also announced layoffs this week. What fashion. The funny thing is that all this happens when Microsoft just reported better-than-expected results. Do you understand? Neither do we. But hey, at least the stock closed at $467.56 in July, so…goodbye coffee anyone?
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