03-21-2023
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced via memo that the company intends to lay off another 10,000 employees. Meta also laid off 11,000 employees in late 2022. As part of a larger restructuring plan, Meta will begin by reducing the size of its recruiting team. Zuckerberg said tech groups would experience restructuring and layoffs next month, followed by business groups in late May. Meta will also cancel lower-priority projects and reduce hiring rates.
Zuckerberg shares more of his philosophy on Meta's work going forward. He intends to remove multiple layers of management, asking many managers to become individual contributors. “A leaner org will execute its highest priorities faster. People will be more productive, and their work will be more fun and fulfilling,” according to Zuckerberg. In addition, he states their data shows engineers still early in their careers perform better when they work in person with teammates at least three days a week. Newly hired engineers who begin their employment in-person also perform better, even if they later transfer to remote work. Zuckerberg hypothesizes it is easier to build trust working in-person, and those relationships help employees work more efficiently.
CNBC reports that Meta was one of the first companies to go remote at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the company continues to promote those roles in 2023. Many of the company's employees may opt to work in person. Notwithstanding its financial challenges, Zuckerberg remains focused on building its "metaverse" (immersive digital realms). The New York Times reports the company may also need to scrutinize its investments in this arena.