Microsoft to lay off ‘underperforming’ employees : Report

The job cuts will happen across all parts of Microsoft, including in its important Security division

Microsoft is planning to lay off underperforming employees, marking yet another round of firings, according to a Business Insider report.

A Microsoft logo is pictured on a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., January 25, 2021. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

These job cuts are happening across all parts of the company, including in its important Security division, the report read.

This is because Microsoft is taking a stronger stance on performance management in a way similar to its competitors, with managers having spent the last few months evaluating employees all the way up to level 80, which is one of its highest levels.

The report cited a company spokesperson as having confirmed the job cuts, but also having declined to share the number of affected employees.

"At Microsoft, we focus on high-performance talent," the report quoted the spokesperson as having said. "We are always working on helping people learn and grow. When people are not performing, we take the appropriate action."

Microsoft has been conducting multiple rounds of layoffs since 2023, which has been a trend in the tech industry.

Microsoft's previous layoff rounds

In May 2024, Microsoft's Xbox division closed several gaming studios, including the famous Arkane Austin and laid off associated staff as a restructuring effort. In June of that year, it again laid off around 1,000 employees and performed yet another round in July.

Microsoft often backfills the vacant roles due to people leaving for performance reasons, leading to little change in the tech giant's overall headcount, which was 228,000 at the end of June, according to the report.