Tech layoffs, have you been impacted?

[DukeBlueBall]

It's an absolute bloodbath out there. Just this week we had
Twitter
Lyft
Opendoor
Zillow
Wayfair
Stripe
Verizon
ArgoAi (closed)
Chime
Upstart
Full list. https://layoffs.fyi/

To make matters worse a lot of tech companies are currently in or going into hiring freezes unlike h1 of the year. Amazon, especially AWS, picked up a lot of slack in hiring, but as of yesterday they were on a hiring freeze.

Last year during the tech boom, the industry overhired a ton of talent with inflated TC packages. I myself included. Now that the free money hose is gone and the economy outlook is poor, companies are doing layoffs to target good cash flow instead of growth. I was laid off back in June but I am very fortunate to be in an earlier wave because the job market right now for tech is brutal. Anecdotally I've heard that there are 15 qualified candidates per senior IC opening.

For those of you impacted, god speed. I wish I can say that things will get better but I can't help feeling like this is a larger market correction for tech, similar to the dot com bubble burst. Ironically, startups are now able to get the talent they coveted, but the startup that's not already having good cash flow probably won't survive.

A lot of semi and hw jobs will be opening up due to the chips act so perhaps that will lead to some rebound in the market.

 

[jleo]

Is the common thread between these companies a massive pandemic hiring spree? Seems like a lot of these people massively scaled up their headcount to meet demand during the pandemic when everyone was home. Can't say that's the case for everyone on that list but does seem like it.

 

[Imaginary_Number]

Interesting that Argo.AI is shutting down. I applied to them a year ago when I dealt with a layoff, so I'm glad I didn't end up going down that route. I hope people can land of their feet. The holidays are a terrible time of the year to get laid off.

 

[ErrorJustin]

Is the common thread between these companies a massive pandemic hiring spree? Seems like a lot of these people massively scaled up their headcount to meet demand during the pandemic when everyone was home. Can't say that's the case for everyone on that list but does seem like it.

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It is battening down the hatches in anticipation of a bigger 2023 economic recession.

It is budget season, so execs are now seeing budget forecasts that project revenue drops next year, hence a need to reign in spending / headcount to remain profitable.

This is why we're seeing many other companies at least enter hiring freezes.

 

[ToddBonzalez]

No layoffs have been hitting the games industry yet thankfully.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

Is the common thread between these companies a massive pandemic hiring spree? Seems like a lot of these people massively scaled up their headcount to meet demand during the pandemic when everyone was home. Can't say that's the case for everyone on that list but does seem like it.

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Massively over hired people with crazy high compensation to meet the demand. Loans were easier to get due to lower interest rates.

No layoffs have been hitting the games industry yet thankfully.

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Gaming should be recession-proof.

 

[FlexMentallo]

There's hiring freezes or at least slowdowns around the gaming industry. Definitely the battening down the hatches is going on even if its not that visible yet.

 

[julia crawford]

Don't work or know anyone who works in any of these big companies so i'm doing just fine and so is everyone i know.

 

[ChrisR]

I'm in the RE space,

Opendoor and Zillow were way too big, it's probably for the best that they trim back. Zillow is in much better shape than Opendoor though, who posted almost a BILLION dollars in losses last quarter, and the market pullback has just started.

Zero fear of losing my job, but that's because I'm a 2x performer at 0.5x pay.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

I'm in the RE space,

Opendoor and Zillow were way too big, it's probably for the best that they trim back. Zillow is in much better shape than Opendoor though, who posted almost a BILLION dollars in losses last quarter, and the market pullback has just started.

Zero fear of losing my job, but that's because I'm a 2x performer at 0.5x pay.

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I was a SWE at Redfin before layoffs, and I'm hearing Redfin will do a 25-30% cut next week:(.

 

[TheWooniestWoona]

I'm not part of any of those, but I was part of a large layoff last year at a rather large tech company.

My sympathy goes out to all those impacted. Having to get out and job hunt again sucks.

 

[cubicle47b]

I'm still getting daily recruiter spam so it appears the tech job market isn't too bad.

 

[EJS]

I've seen some shifting of personnel at my job. I can't tell if it's a good time then to explore avenues outside of tech. I've been a SWE for about 8 years and I am getting a bit ambivalent to coding lately.

 

[Heliex]

It is brutal.

I'm a QA manager and I can tell you seeing what's going on in other QA studios (Specifically square Enix Montreal which is basically our neighbor), it's scary.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

I'm not part of any of those, but I was part of a large layoff last year at a rather large tech company.

My sympathy goes out to all those impacted. Having to get out and job hunt again sucks.

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Last year job hunting after a tech layoff was a vacation. Because you're basically guaranteed a new job with better WLB and pay.

This year, people should get unemployment ASAP and go for some secondary education while they search.

 

[LuxCommander]

Working in tech in the entertainment space (Animation/VFX). We're in a separate bubble that's going to slow due to changes in the streaming world. The boom we just experienced due to all the extra post work needed from the glut of projects the studios had is starting to wind down. The recession that's incoming + the strategy changes at Warners and Netflix are going to lead to less projects, so I expect that it's going to get hairy for a bit. I'm not worried for my position at my current company because we have an extremely stable position in the market. I don't think I'd feel the same way if I were at a smaller boutique FX shop.

 

[C.Mongler]

I don't work in tech per se, but I do do front end web development for a decently sized non-profit org. We just got word that hiring is now on hold and there will be no promotions/raises next year (at least at end of this year, perhaps later into the year). I'm somewhat concerned because I get paid a lot relative to others in my workplace, and there's a decent chunk of people that just don't get what I do, which makes me feel somewhat vulnerable if layoffs get considered, but it would be very fucking funny for them to try and continue moving forward without me, so idk.

The biggest thing is I was hoping to jump ship in the next 6-months and it's seeming like if there's stability here I should probably just hang out for a while longer.

 

[thewienke]

Is a lot of this a result of Wall Street demanding profits from Silicon Valley?

I get the impression that investors are antsy and feel like some of these tech companies are long past their massive growth phase.

 

[Dr. Nothing Loud]

I'm scared because I graduate in 1.5 years, hoping this will get better by then. Things were looking up at the beginning of this year for my type of career. Hopefully I'll be able to dodge hiring problems though since I'll have my doctorate.

 

[Damaniel]

I'm like a cockroach - I survived at least 6 layoff rounds at my last job over 19 years, and ended up taking a voluntary severance instead of rolling the dice on the 7th.

I'm not so concerned about my current job - our office has been desperately trying to hire with the goal of doubling headcount in the next 18 months - we've brought on 3 new people just this week and have a few other potential candidates in the pipeline.

 

[ChrisR]

I was a SWE at Redfin before layoffs, and I'm hearing Redfin will do a 25-30% cut next week:(.

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That's a reasonable cut considering the market conditions, and I bet they hired a similar number in the recent year runups.

Did you enjoy it there? Of the various companies in the proptech space I think they would be one of the better ones to work for. Zillow could be too, but they also seem a lot more fast and loose with their approach.

 

[Brandino]

I'm getting laid off next week. I was a contractor at my current gig, so they tend to be the first to go. I've gotten a good response to my applications so far, so hopefully I'm not out of work too long.

I hate doing the job searching and interviewing though.

Edit: Anyone have a company that is hiring for software developers, please dm me.

 

[The Albatross]

No, and I'm not really worried at my company. We're a very slow growth, private company, and while business boomed during the pandemic we didn't aggressively over hire or try to invest too much to then have the blow back. We're still steadily growing this quarter. The biggest thing hurting our business is the strong dollar, which is stunting overseas revenue, but it's similar to how it was from ~2014-2017.

The recruiter messages have definitely slowed. I was getting... I dunno, 10-20 recruiter messages/emails a week, maybe more I can't remember, during peak 2020/2021. Now I'm getting 2-3 a week on LinkedIn, at the most.

Is a lot of this a result of Wall Street demanding profits from Silicon Valley?

I get the impression that investors are antsy and feel like some of these tech companies are long past their massive growth phase.

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Part of it, for sure. Advertising revenue has plummetted in the last 6 months, so businesses that are built on advertising, or tangential to advertising-based business, are definitely feeling a crunch. Tech companies that sell products have generally weathered this so far.

The first hit of layoffs was to fast growing companies who over-grew in 2020... I'm thinking of a company like Section4, which I interviewed for ~2 years ago, who had super aggressive growth during the pandemic as learning shifted online. And then they laid off like 40% of their staff. The next tier was for companies over-invested with VC funding because of easy money supply, so when the money supply tightened with the fed raising rates, companies who hadn't started turning a profit had to cut dramatically to balance their short term outlook, they couldn't rely on another series of debt to keep the lights on. The next tier is now hitting larger, more sustained companies who either over-grew during the pandemic or are seeing service use/subscription drop and it's affecting advertising revenue... Facebook, Netflix, other service companies, and that'll funnel down to companies that support/tangential to those businesses. Hubspot aggressively hired in 2020 and beyond, and Hubspot isn't an advertising business, but they're tangential to ads because their product is a social media/customer relation suite that is tied critically to the affectiveness of other companies to sustain growth on ad-based networks... so as those come down, the others will.

I'm not counting crypto and experimental fintech in this.

If there's a tech sector to go into in the nxt 2-3 years, I think it's insurance... Insurance fucking weathers storms better than anybody, haha.

 

[swsp]

A colleague (new grad) just finished interviewing at 14 places and got 14 offers. Some total comp offers were over $350k. At the moment I'm thinking my specialization area will remain relatively safe, but we'll see when I test the market next year.

 

[cwmartin]

I'll be honest, these companies have a heavy tech backbone, but to call them "Tech Companies" is a misrepresentation IMO. Zillow is a glorified MLS, not a technological innovative company. Likewise with most of these companies. They might be tech darlings, but they still play by the same rules and economies the most mature of industries exist in.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

I'm not so concerned about my current job - our office has been desperately trying to hire with the goal of doubling headcount in the next 18 months - we've brought on 3 new people just this week and have a few other potential candidates in the pipeline.

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Woah, where you at. Just in case I am on the market again soon haha.

 

[twentytwo22]

My company laid off 15% around 6 months ago. I put no/not worried, but I guess I'm a tiny bit worried? I'm in a pretty unique and useful position (I guess a lot of people probably think this) and definitely wasn't on the chopping block for the first layoff. They also said they cut everything they planned to cut (companies probably always say this though), and our Q3 earnings were positive compared to expectations, so hopefully we'll be fine.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

That's a reasonable cut considering the market conditions, and I bet they hired a similar number in the recent year runups.

Did you enjoy it there? Of the various companies in the proptech space I think they would be one of the better ones to work for. Zillow could be too, but they also seem a lot more fast and loose with their approach.

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Redfin was ok. The pace was slow and their tech stack / tooling was pretty terrible. Zillow is pretty similar to Redfin, but a little better in most regards.

I'll be honest, these companies have a heavy tech backbone, but to call them "Tech Companies" is a misrepresentation IMO. Zillow is a glorified MLS, not a technological innovative company. Likewise with most of these companies. They might be tech darlings, but they still play by the same rules and economies the most mature of industries exist in.

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A whole lot majority of tech companies are disruptors in a traditional market. Stripe is in finance, but they're absolutely a tech company. Zillow's workforce is mostly devs, so from a labor POV they're absolutely tech.

 

[Razgriz417]

Sucks to be in SF right now


View: https://twitter.com/SuzannePhan/status/1588310477691850752

 

[vypek]

Not yet. I survived an earlier round of layoffs. Somewhat worried cause I'm not ready to start interviewing. But I have been thinking about a new job. I'm also sort of tired of coding at the moment so if I was let go I'd take some time to just be off. Thankfully and luckily I have savings for now so I'm prepared if I am let go

 

[vixolus]

Im not too worried. Started a recent job in finance and it seems very stable and didnt jump the gun with hiring sprees. I'm not sure the contractors on the teams will be renewed or converted fte but I'm a fte. I think i should be safe for at least a year + which hopefully the economy will have settled better

 

[Darknight]

Gaming should be recession-proof.

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This is a misconception. It's recession-resistant not recession-proof.

 

[jon bones]

No, I think I'm safe. We seem to be pretty smart about our hiring, and our balance of contractors so we can shed headcount without firing employees.

 

[sfedai0]

Id worry only if youre a contractor. The big tech companies are mostly freezing hires for the most part (Twitter not withstanding.)

 

[Vapelord]

My brother who was tied in with Square Enix Montreal who got acquired by Embracer a few months back just up and shut down the Montreal operations in the past week.

https://www.eurogamer.net/embracer-group-shuts-down-former-square-enix-montreal-studio

 

[CaptainNuevo]

I'm not impacted, and not that worried right now since my company just had one and I was luckily unimpacted.

I was hit by the 2020 COVID onset wave though.

 

[prophetvx]

Is a lot of this a result of Wall Street demanding profits from Silicon Valley?

I get the impression that investors are antsy and feel like some of these tech companies are long past their massive growth phase.

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It's more about many companies reached insane valuations during covid, many now are valued 70-90% less than their all-time high. Many companies with that increased cash flow went on huge hiring sprees.

The outlook isn't great for the next 5 years, growth across all industries will be a struggle, tech has just been more susceptible to it because of the crazy growth it had beforehand.

It's also a significant opportunity to reset wages. When you've got people 2-3 years out of university earning $200k+, you've got a major liability when cashflow declines.

 

[brokenmachine]

I'm trying to break into the tech industry so this has me a little worried, but I'll still keep trying.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

A colleague (new grad) just finished interviewing at 14 places and got 14 offers. Some total comp offers were over $350k.

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Must be from Hedge Funds.

 

[Nesotenso]

A lot of semi and hw jobs will be opening up due to the chips act so perhaps that will lead to some rebound in the market.

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yeah about that, a lot of semi companies are under hiring freezes. The CHIPs acts will help companies that operate foundries and not so much for the fabless ones. 2023 will probably see layoffs as well. Intel will do lay offs soon even though they are a beneficiary of the CHIPs act. But they have had issues even before the CHIPs act and were always going to be in a rough shape until their foundry initiatives take shape.

 

[bsigg]

I luckily wasn't impacted by the layoffs where I work and feel pretty confident that I won't be hit in any future layoffs due to my position's closeness to the C level leadership with regards to reporting.

Hopefully anyone impacted lands on their feet and as at least given a decent severance package.

 

[Tactical Tumbler]

No layoffs have been hitting the games industry yet thankfully.

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There have been layoffs.

 

[swsp]

Must be from Hedge Funds.

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Nah, not fintech. Database systems.

 

[DukeBlueBall]

Nah, not fintech. Database systems.

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Jesus. He better ramp up quickly and be productive haha.

That's an impressive offer extension rate. Even 50% is amazing during recent months.

 

[NetMapel]

I'm trying to break into the tech industry so this has me a little worried, but I'll still keep trying.

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My one piece of advice would be to not just focus on "tech" companies like Google, Netflix, Microsoft type… etc. Look for companies that have tech needs as well like banks, animation, aerospace, games and more. There's tech needs everywhere and Silicon Valley type is just a very specific but big part working with programming.

 

[onyx]

My last company starting laying people off in January of this year. My time to get laid off was on July 22nd. I was working remotely and was laid off over the phone. For me it was a blessing though. I feel like I wasted over a decade there. I got a new job in August making over 30K more after 1 interview.

Everyone I know that got laid off from that place also got better jobs with better pay.

 

[19thCenturyFox]

I'm expecting us to get hit hard next year but I'm actually not sure whether my job is on the chopping block since I started in May of this year and I still hold a junior position for the time being. So I'm cheap labor for my field of work. Obviously I'm still worried. I'm always worried.

 

[Deleted member 26039]

Haven't heard of anything at Salesforce other than hiring freezes. I'm on the consulting side so as long as companies partner with us I should be fine.

 

[Minthara]

I was part of a team layoff from a job in August due to the Web3 market contraction. That was always a sign that something like this was coming.

 

[prophetvx]

I'm trying to break into the tech industry so this has me a little worried, but I'll still keep trying.

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There are plenty of jobs out there. Just don't have expectations around silicon valley or insane wages. The mass layoffs are happening because many of them were justifiably expendable because times are tightening, many who were hired in the last few years for way more than they're actually worth because there was a major labor shortage and everyone was overpaying.