The era of unemployment in technology is not yet over, but it is losing some of its intensity and evolving into a distinct pattern.
Microsoft’s latest round of layoffs, in addition to the roughly 10,000 it laid off earlier this year, are not unexpected. The tech colossus is reducing its sales staff, which is typically one of the areas that technology companies reduce when budgets are cut.
Recruiting, marketing, and client-facing positions are also frequently affected when technology companies decide to cut costs.
Recent reductions at Crunchbase are an excellent illustration of this. In a spreadsheet that the business data platform released in conjunction with its recent staffing reductions, it is evident which departments the startup felt it could afford to reduce: sales roles of variable seniority, customer success staff, marketing, and recruiting.
Even Crunchbase News was popular. (Note: During my tenure at Crunchbase, I helped establish this team and became a shareholder in the company.)
However, there is a shift afoot in the sphere of technology layoffs.
Examining the layoffs FYI, a database of tech staff layoffs reveals an intriguing trend in the making. Since the peak of layoffs in January 2023, the number of tech workers asked to depart has steadily decreased.
