On 26 October, Microsoft’s chief people officer, Amy Coleman, introduced a “Voluntary Exit Offer” for employees in participating organisations in the US, Canada, the UK and India, at level 70 and below. Microsoft’s own post gives no headcount; press reports citing the internal memo and Reuters put it at roughly 60,000 people, about a quarter of the workforce. It follows the company’s first voluntary retirement programme in April, which more than 30 per cent of eligible employees took.
Coleman calls it a time-limited, voluntary programme and writes that participation varies with each business’s priorities, customer commitments and workforce needs. A spokesperson told KUOW the package is comparable to standard severance and that AI is not driving the offer. Eligible staff have received an email with their terms; the post gives no deadline.
So…:
What does it do to a workplace when the employer is the one suggesting you leave?
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