Microsoft Offers Buyouts to About 60,000 Employees in an AI-Era Reshuffle

October 27 — Microsoft confirmed to the tech outlet TechCrunch on Monday local time that it is offering voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 employees. The move is the company’s latest step to cut costs and reshape its workforce for the AI era.

Microsoft chief people officer Amy Coleman sent employees a notice about the buyout programme, which was also published on Microsoft’s website.

The notice says employees at vice-president level and below in some teams in the United States, Canada, India and the UK are eligible to apply. According to Bloomberg, departments taking part include Xbox, Windows, Copilot and finance. Some staff in data centres, sales and marketing are not covered.

The notice to employees said: “The voluntary separation programme is an important part of how we are adapting to change: it brings greater flexibility and, where feasible, gives employees more choice in planning the next stage of their careers. For eligible employees who have already been thinking about leaving to develop elsewhere, this programme offers a new option to make that transition with the company’s support.”

Microsoft said eligible employees would receive an email on Monday containing a link with details of the programme. The terms are similar to Microsoft’s standard severance package.

The notice said: “The voluntary separation programme is a new experiment for us. We will learn from it. In the meantime, we will keep helping employees focus on core work, learn new skills and, at the right moment, help them find new roles inside Microsoft. There is no single approach that fits every team and every employee. In this way we continue to create opportunities for our people to grow and contribute while meeting different business needs.”

Voluntary buyouts let Microsoft shrink headcount while avoiding the shock of large-scale layoffs. This is not the company’s first buyout programme: earlier this year Microsoft offered buyouts to employees who had reached retirement age, and more than 30% of about 8,750 eligible staff accepted.

As of the end of June, Microsoft employed 223,000 people.