LinkedIn, a business professionals-focused social media network owned by Microsoft Corp., announced on Monday that it would eliminate 716 jobs due to waning demand and close its China-specific job application.
Although LinkedIn, which has 20,000 employees, has seen quarterly revenue growth over the past year, it has joined other major technology companies, including its parent, in cutting staff due to a dimming outlook for the global economy.
According to Layoffs.fyi, which has been monitoring the effects, more than 270,000 tech jobs have been eliminated globally in the last six months. In addition to charging recruiting and sales professionals who use the network to find prospects a subscription fee, LinkedIn also generates revenue from the sale of advertising space.
In a letter to staff members, LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky explained that the company’s operations would be streamlined by eliminating layers in the sales, operations, and support teams. This would enable quicker decision-making.
“With the market and customer demand fluctuating more, and to serve emerging and growth markets more effectively, we are expanding the use of vendors,” Roslansky wrote.
Additionally, according to Roslansky’s letter, the changes would lead to the creation of 250 new jobs. Employees who were impacted by the cuts would be eligible to apply for those positions, according to a LinkedIn spokesperson.
LinkedIn also announced that it was getting rid of the scaled-down jobs app it provides in China after deciding to mostly leave the country in 2021, due to a “challenging” environment. By August 9, LinkedIn said it will phase out the final China app, called InCareers.
“Despite our initial progress, InCareer faced fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic climate, which ultimately led us to the decision of discontinuing the service,” the company told users of the website.
According to a company spokesperson, LinkedIn will continue to have a presence in China to support Chinese businesses looking to hire and train workers abroad.
The majority of recent layoffs in the tech sector have been made by large corporations, including 27,000 at Amazon.com Inc., the most ever. Meta Platforms Inc, the owner of Facebook, cut 21,000 jobs, and Alphabet Inc, the owner of Google, cut 12,000 jobs.
According to Layoffs.fyi, 5,000 technology jobs had already been cut before LinkedIn’s announcement.
Microsoft, which paid about $26 billion to acquire LinkedIn in 2016, recently announced the elimination of 10,000 jobs and recorded a $1.2 billion charge as a result.
(Photo Credit: Reuters)
