Are layoffs and RIF common at Microsoft? I know stack ranking and letting go bottom 5-10 percent used to happen like 10-15 years ago but I believe it stopped after Satya took over.
Also, I hardly hear about layoffs at Microsoft. People praise the WLB and complain about bad pay. Talking about SDE roles mostly in US.
Is Microsoft no longer a place for good job stability?
If you're in your 30s, or nearing 40, watch out. By age 45, you could be out. Microsoft is known to sp*t out employees that are over 45. They practice a hire now with 40ish to fire within five years just so they can continue to have over 40 stats. They heavily discriminate despite stating they are a DEI company. Ageism is a major issue, and a very small percentage if any, are employees over 50. Microsoft is not into longevity with their employees, and shows no loyalty. Knowing this going in, you can have realistic expectations as to what you will get out of your time there.
So people get fired regularly?
ZR/IR just reduces the amount of money they hand out. Not really required otherwise if both sides have an adult conversation.
This is bad. Don't you need ZR/IR to fire though?
Microsoft officially no longer stack ranks, but it still happens in most groups. Although the bottom 5% are not necessarily shown the door, employees that their managers deem as low performers (whether they are or not) are let go. Most of these dismissals happen between September and December and many after a new manager has come into a group and wants to bring in their compatriots.