Google lays off employees, restructures several teams

After a brief pause, the dreaded layoffs cycle that saw 1000s losing jobs in 2022 and 2023, seems to be returning back. After Tesla’s recent 10% workforce reduction, this time its Google (again), which is undergoing a significant restructuring. The move comes amidst ongoing efforts by the company to streamline operations and to optimize resources. Details remain scarce for now.

While Google hasn’t disclosed the exact number of employees affected, the restructuring involves layoffs as well shifting of certain roles. The company maintains that the layoffs are not company-wide, and reports indicate that the layoffs have impacted teams across multiple departments within Google (teams in Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East), including finance and real estate. More specially, specific teams within finance, such as revenue cash operations, business services, and treasury, are set to be particularly affected.

Those impacted by the layoffs will have the chance to apply for open positions within the company. Additionally, Google plans to relocate a portion of the affected roles to key investment hubs such as India, Chicago, Atlanta, and Dublin.

A key driver of Google’s restructuring appears to be a focus on operational efficiency and resource optimization. A company spokesperson, quoted by Reuters, emphasized that throughout the latter half of 2023 and into 2024, various teams implemented changes to streamline operations. These changes likely involves eliminating unnecessary layers of management, consolidating redundant functions, and aligning resources more strategically with core product priorities.

“As we’ve said, we’re responsibly investing in our company’s biggest priorities and the significant opportunities ahead,” a spokesperson for Google commented on the matter. “To best position us for these opportunities, throughout the second half of 2023 and into 2024, a number of our teams made changes to become more efficient and work better, remove layers and align their resources to their biggest product priorities. Through this, we’re simplifying our structures to give employees more opportunity to work on our most innovative and important advances and our biggest company priorities, while reducing bureaucracy and layers.”

Ruth Porat, Google’s Chief Financial Officer, has also outlined plans to establish “growth hubs” in select locations as part of the restructuring efforts. These hubs, which include Bangalore, Mexico City, and Dublin, are envisioned as centers of innovation and expansion for the company. By relocating select roles to these hubs, Google can potentially leverage lower operational costs and access a wider talent pool in these regions.

The latest restructuring at Google is not an isolated incident. Google has undergone a series of workforce reductions in recent times. In January 2023, the tech behemoth announced it would eliminate roughly 12,000 positions, which constituted approximately 6% of its global workforce at the time. This decision was attributed to a shift in focus towards AI and a need to streamline operations amidst economic considerations.

Furthermore, companies like Tesla, Apple, and Amazon have also implemented restructuring plans in recent years, leading to significant job cuts. According to layoff tracker Layoffs.fyi, more than 74,000 employees have been given the boot this year by 257 tech companies. The numbers were more horrifying last year – 2023 saw 263,180 employees getting laid off by nearly 1200 companies across the globe. The reasons for these layoffs are quite common – companies continue to grapple with inflation, rising interest rates, and a potentially slowing market, forcing firms to gain a newfound focus on profitability.