A sad thing we’ve had to cover over the last couple of years is the numerous, and we mean NUMEROUS, layoffs that have happened within the gaming industry. While a few layoffs here and there can be “natural” due to game development cycles, when they’re happening one after another, it’s totally different. It’s gotten so bad that many are wondering how the game industry will survive long term, as many studios are getting shut down, or key people are leaving. That also applies to Xbox, which had massive layoffs recently. Yet, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella seems to think that this isn’t a bad thing at all.
This comes from a blog from the Microsoft CEO, who started off his thoughts on the state of the company with:
“I want to express my sincere gratitude to those who have left. Their contributions have shaped who we are as a company, helping build the foundation we stand on today. And for that, I am deeply grateful.”
…except they didn’t “leave,” they were fired or let go. That’s a huge difference. And if they “helped shape who you were,” why did you let them go in the first place?
Adding to the frustrations of his words was this statement:
“By every objective measure, Microsoft is thriving—our market performance, strategic positioning, and growth all point up and to the right. We’re investing more in CapEx than ever before. Our overall headcount is relatively unchanged, and some of the talent and expertise in our industry and at Microsoft is being recognized and rewarded at levels never seen before. And yet, at the same time, we’ve undergone layoffs.”
So, he literally just admitted they’re “doing better than ever,” and yet they laid people off, and when he tried to follow up on that, he noted that the situation was an “enigma of success in an industry that has no franchise value.”
What exactly does that mean? He wouldn’t say, and that speaks volumes in its own right. Plus, Nadella stated that he couldn’t rule out layoffs in the future! All of these statements point to a recurring trend in the gaming industry and beyond where those at the top truly don’t care about those who are making the company successful at its most fundamental levels, and only care about the company’s profit and profit margins.
If things like this continue, we’re sure a much different blog post from Nadella is likely to happen in the future. Time will tell.
