Meta to shed another 10,000 staff as "year of efficiency" continues

In addition, Meta are to stop recruiting for a further 5000 open positions, according to a memo from Mark Zuckerberg shared earlier today.

News of the latest round of redundancies had already been leaked, amid reports that the company was deliberately assigning "subpar" evaluations to staff to prepare for another round of redundancies.

The latest round of job cuts comes on the back of 11,000 redundancies announced last November. By the time today's announcement is actioned, Meta will have cut its global workforce by around 24% to 66,000.

Today's memo gave no indication that Zuckerberg had any doubts about the decision to invest heavily in the nascent metaverse. In fact, Zuckerberg said the November 2022 staff cuts had taught him that "leaner is better."

"Since we reduced our workforce last year, one surprising result is that many things have gone faster," he wrote. "In retrospect, I underestimated the indirect costs of lower priority projects... A leaner org will execute its highest priorities faster. People will be more productive, and their work will be more fun and fulfilling. We will become an even greater magnet for the most talented people. That's why in our Year of Efficiency, we are focused on canceling projects that are duplicative or lower priority and making every organization as lean as possible."

The memo also indicated that Zuckerberg doesn't expect the challenges facing Meta to ease up any time soon. Advertising revenues are in decline, as Facebook users tighten their own belts and advertisers subsequently adjust theirs. Zuckerberg expects this new economic reality to continue for some years to come.

Zuckerberg's message also comes with a warning bell for employees who might be enjoying working remotely. Despite emphasising that Meta builds "new ways for people to feel closer," it would appear that this spirit of flexible collaboration doesn't extend to Meta employees.

"As part of our Year of Efficiency, we're focusing on understanding this further and finding ways to make sure people build the necessary connections to work effectively. In the meantime, I encourage all of you to find more opportunities to work with your colleagues in person."