Microsoft has reported that it has cut 9,000 job positions around the world. This is part of the ongoing restructuring programme in the company and it will slow down its operations by reducing its workforce. According to Microsoft, it is resulting in these cuts to be able to match the costs with revenue and focus areas of strategic growth tied to artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing.

Highlights:

• Job cuts impact multiple teams, including Azure and mixed reality units.
• The restructuring will incur a $1.2 billion charge in Q2, mainly for severance.
• Microsoft will focus resources on key AI and cloud investments.
• Affected employees will receive severance and transition support.
• The restructuring follows 10,000 layoffs announced last year.

Microsoft management agreed that this restructuring was a tough but good decision that will make them more streamlined. The company is expecting to ameliorate certain positions along with propagation in peak-growth areas such as AI and cloud. The shift will be a strategic direction towards these imperative areas.

During the restructuring, the decision was biased towards investments in the integration of AI in products which form the core of the company, i.e., Azure, Office and Bing. The restructuring according to Microsoft executives is necessary to sustain long term competitiveness and market leadership in the transformative technologies. The firm is taking strategic decisions to focus on resources.

Microsoft described assistance to be given to affected staff members, which covered severance packages, healthcare provisions, and career coaches. The company insists that the restructuring is essential to the future maintenance of innovation and growth. The strategy of Microsoft allocates AI and cloud services to be the foundation of its new direction.