Microsoft Telecom Layoffs, Facebook Layoffs in Africa: A Month After Microsoft's Mass Layoffs in Lagos (Nigeria) Facebook/Meta Does the Same and Microsoft is Now Retreating and Quitting an Entire Sector! (Affirmed Networks and Metaswitch)
Disasters in the making for GAFAM. Money down the drain.
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Microsoft to quit Affirmed and Metaswitch in telecom retreat
When Andrew Ward decided to schedule a meeting for people affected by Microsoft's recent telecom layoffs, he thought perhaps 100 people might attend. Stunned by the level of interest, the CEO of Award Consulting ended up with about 350 registrations and more than 200 people on the Zoom call that happened this week – which became a full-blown webinar instead of a casual, in-person chat. Those numbers provided evidence of the move's impact and the concern that surrounds it.
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According to a Business Insider report earlier this month, the software giant is to cut as many as 1,500 jobs at its Azure for Operators and Mission Engineering units, and the axe appears to have fallen heavily on the parts responsible for developing network functions. A focus for Metaswitch is on voice-based communications technologies such as a private branch exchange (or PBX). The other main developer, Affirmed Networks, produces "core" software for 5G networks. It was also bought in 2020, reportedly for more than $1 billion.
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Meta Cuts Lagos Office Space After Layoffs Hit Nigerian Team
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is set to reduce its office space in Lagos following global layoffs that affected its Nigerian team in mid-2023. According to sources familiar with the matter, at least 35 employees in Nigeria were impacted by these layoffs, which included the engineering team.
Meta's decision to downsize its office space in the 15-story Kings Tower building in Ikoyi, Lagos, is part of a broader real estate renegotiation strategy amidst changing business needs. The tower reportedly commands an $800/sqm/per annum asking price. Meta, which opened its Lagos office in 2022, emphasized that the reduction in office space aligns with its global strategy to optimize real estate use and implement desk-sharing arrangements.
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Exclusive: Meta will reduce office space in Lagos after layoffs affected Nigerian team
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, will reduce its office space in Lagos after global layoffs in mid-2023 affected its Nigerian team. At least 35 people were affected by those layoffs, three people with knowledge of the matter said. The company’s engineering team, which had 24 employees according to a 2022 report, was laid off.
“Engineers continue to serve the region from a number of our global engineering hubs outside of Nigeria,” a company spokesperson told TechCabal via email, declining to specify how many Nigerian employees were affected by 2023 layoffs that reduced global headcount by 20,000.
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Meta follows Microsoft’s lead in scaling back Nigerian operations
Meta is following Microsoft’s lead by reducing its presence in Nigeria. The tech giant is scaling back its office space in the country and transitioning to desk sharing for its workers.
This follows a TechCabal report that the tech giant laid off about 35 members of its Nigerian team as part of a global layoff round in mid-2023, which affected over 10,000 workers. The report said the company’s local engineering was the hardest hit.
“Meta engineers continue to serve the region from a number of our global engineering hubs outside of Nigeria,” a company’s spokesperson said in an email to BusinessDay on Thursday.
Also (related): Microsoft Azure Laying Off Thousands, Not Hundreds!