Microsoft announced steps to address low performance this week — including a two year re-hiring ban for such employees. The development comes mere weeks after the tech giant fired around 2000 employees without severance pay after deeming them as ‘underperformers’. Unverified reports suggest that Microsoft is also gearing up for a fresh round of layoffs next month.
According to an internal email viewed by Business Insider, the company has crafted “new and enhanced tools” that will help managers to “swiftly address” low performance. The tools outlined by Chief People Officer Amy Coleman are also designed to “accelerate high performance” as Microsoft heightens its focus on accountability and growth.
The company has also implemented a new option for exiting underperformers and a policy barring such people from internal transfers or being re-hired within two years.
The email explained that employees who failed to meet expectations could either choose to implement a ‘performance improvement plan’ or transition out of the company. Workers with zero and 60% reward outcomes as well as those undergoing a PIP would not be eligible for internal transfers. Former employees who had left under similar conditions would “not be eligible for rehire until two years after their termination date”.
Microsoft performance reviews typically use a zero to 200 scale which in turn determines how much an employee will receive in stock awards and cash bonuses.
The changes come amidst reports that Microsoft is gearing up for a fresh round of layoffs in the month of May. As per a Business Insider report from earlier this month, this will mainly affect mid-level managers as well as people in non-technical roles. People familiar with the matter also told the publication that some Microsoft organisations wanted to increase their ‘span of control’ or the number of employees reporting to each manager.