Following the announcement of Microsoft that it is overhauling its sales force in the coming weeks, the software company has been speculated to execute a massive layoff.
Microsoft is reportedly planning a reorganisation in view of its goal to focus as a cloud software company. This image reinvention, which has been an ongoing process since years ago, is said to affect more and more groups within the company.
In a report of Bloomberg published Friday, Microsoft will be moving some employees to another department while others are in danger of the company's supposed downsizing plans. The publication mentioned two particular divisions that will be affected by the said move.
The global sales and marketing group led by Jean-Philippe Courtois and the Worldwide Commercial Business group led by Judson Althoff will be dissolved accordingly. These divisions have hugely contributed to the entire sales force of Microsoft.
Amid the reports, Microsoft declined to comment on the issue.
Since Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella rose to the seat in 2014, one of his main agenda is to transform the company from a packaged software firm to a cloud software one. From its latest earnings, Microsoft has seen a huge growth in cloud services more than anything else and that could well explain the move.
According to The Seattle Times, this move might not only be about the dissolution of two divisions but a massive layoff. Currently, Microsoft's sales groups run with over 51,000 people in the workforce.
In July 2016, Microsoft had laid off 2,850 job positions, at least 900 of which come from the sales group. In September of the same year, Althoff had announced that his division added 1,000 people specialising in cloud-computing products.
Overall, Microsoft has 121,500 people running the company. This figure includes 45,000 people working in its Redmond office in Washington and 10,000 more manning its acquired professional social network LinkedIn.
