Microsoft is extending voluntary buyout offers to approximately 60,000 employees across the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and India. This initiative targets a significant portion of the company’s 223,000 workforce as part of an effort to reduce staff levels without conducting additional layoffs.
According to a message from Chief People Officer Amy Coleman, eligible employees—including those in AI experiences, Copilot, CoreAI, Windows + Devices, Xbox, finance, and human resources—can opt for these exit packages. The program also partially involves Microsoft’s Cloud + AI and Microsoft AI teams, while marketing, commercial business, discovery and quantum, and security teams are currently excluded.
This move follows previous rounds of staff reductions, such as the 4,800 layoffs announced in November that primarily affected Xbox and commercial sales teams. The current offer differs significantly from the earlier voluntary retirement program, which was limited to around 9,000 employees based on age and service criteria.
In a memo to staff, Coleman emphasized the unique nature of this program. She wrote, "The Voluntary Exit Offer is new for us. We’ll learn from it. At the same time, we’ll keep helping people focus on the work that matters most, build new skills and, where it makes sense, find new opportunities across Microsoft." Coleman added that there is no one-size-fits-all approach, aiming to meet different business needs while supporting employee growth.
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