Google has been making headlines regularly this week due to some major changes in their workforce. On Friday, the tech giant made a major shift in their workforce as they announced cuts in their various divisions, potentially affecting thousands of employees.
The cuts were announced as part of Google’s plans to reorganize their workforce, with a focus on “streamlining and reducing the overall number of roles in certain product areas”. The company plans to capitalize on the emergence of artificial intelligence and machine learning, shifting resources to position Google and its products for the future.
The cuts came from several different divisions, with the most affected being their Hardware and Accessory line, which is estimated to cut close to 10% of its current workforce. Google’s AI team, Google Cloud and YouTube have also seen job cuts in recent days, as the tech giant looks to adjust to the changing digital needs of the market.
Despite the cuts, Google has still seen some positive outcomes. Since the reorganization, they have hired over 500 new staff and promoted hundreds of other employees to fill the gap of those who have been laid off.
The news of layoffs has been met with mixed reactions in the market. While many feel the job cuts could have been avoided, Google claims they had to downsize due to the changing market environment. They cite increasing competition, decreased demand and the emergence of new technologies as the primary drivers of their decision.
Regardless, Google remains one of the largest companies in the world and is actively investing in new technologies to stay ahead of the curve. While the layoffs are unfortunate, this shift in strategy could benefit the company and its employees in the long run.