對科技公司的員工們而言,最近幾天是糟糕的、可怕的、差勁的、很壞的幾天。
先是11月4日,埃隆·馬斯克收購社交媒體應用程序推特(Twitter)一周之后,宣布裁員數千人。媒體報道裁員人數高達3,700人,占公司近一半員工。現在,Meta的馬克·扎克伯格宣布將裁員約11,000人,約占13%的員工。
告訴員工他們將被裁員并不容易,就像告訴一個人他小時候養的愛犬即將死去一樣。但這兩位億萬富翁宣布裁員消息的方式有明顯的區別。
推特的員工在工作日之后收到的一封(無簽名的)電子郵件,知道了自己的命運。還有人無法登錄其公司郵箱或通信系統,才發現自己的崗位已經被裁撤。馬斯克后來澄清,公司向被解雇的員工提供了三個月的離職補償金。據彭博社(Bloomberg)報道,推特還在全球大規模裁員,其中印度團隊從200人減少到12人,加納的大多數被裁員工只能夠領到下個月的工資。
這封僅帶有推特簽名的電子郵件毫不避諱地說道:“正如今天早些時候所說,推特將進行裁員,以幫助改善公司健康。這種決定并不容易,我們很抱歉地通知您,您在推特的崗位受到裁員影響。”員工們不清楚哪些人受到了影響以及具體的裁員細節,而且裁員過于突然,其合法性遭到了質疑。
11月9日,輪到扎克伯格宣布這樣的壞消息。他對前Meta同事們采取了一種不同的方式。Meta官網公開發布了一封由扎克伯格簽名的信件,信中的語氣比推特的電子郵件更人性化。
扎克伯格說道:“我要對這些決定以及公司目前的處境負責。我知道這對所有人而言都是艱難的決定,尤其對受影響的人們感到抱歉。”主動承擔責任,這種做法在Meta高管中并不常見。他還表示自己沒有準確預測到新冠疫情初期的電子商務繁榮會持續。信件中明確承諾提供16周的離職補償金、移民支持和職業服務,并提供了“咨詢答疑和參與信息交流”的機會。
“埃隆·馬斯克讓馬克·扎克伯格變成了英雄”
正如扎克伯格的信件中所說的那樣,裁員從來都不是好事情,但每一位首席執行官宣布裁員決定的方式卻有顯著的差異。有些人力資源經理批評馬斯克粗暴的做法。
Security Risk Advisors的人力資源經理凱蒂·卡拉布雷斯發推文稱:“撇開潛在的法律問題不談,很多糟糕的人力資源行為都被歸結為‘當你規模化做某件事情時,必須走捷徑。’我不買賬。總有更富有同情心、更人道的選擇。領導者之所以如此懦弱,是因為他們把自己的舒適感置于他人之上,或者他們選擇不去做艱苦、耗時的工作,或者兩者兼而有之。這是軟弱、可悲而殘忍的行徑。”
盡管如此,扎克伯格并不算是最優秀的溝通者。正如《華盛頓郵報》(Washington Post)的威爾·奧雷穆斯在推文中所說,扎克伯格在與被裁職員工召開的Zoom電話會議中,沒有回答任何問題。
但在看到推特之前的冷酷做法之后,Meta和扎克伯格處理裁員的方式還是得到了一些人的認可。
攝影師丹尼爾·卡思伯特發推文稱:“我知道現在流行討厭Meta,但它們處理裁員的方式值得尊敬。”
身為億萬富翁的首席執行官們很少會因為他們的同情心或理性而受到稱贊,但在宣布裁員時,他們還是應該展現出人性化的一面,這非常重要。正如加州大學洛杉磯分校(UCLA)的教授薩拉·T·羅伯茨博士在推文中所說的那樣:“埃隆·馬斯克讓馬克·扎克伯格變成了英雄。”(財富中文網)
譯者:劉進龍
審校:汪皓
對科技公司的員工們而言,最近幾天是糟糕的、可怕的、差勁的、很壞的幾天。
先是11月4日,埃隆·馬斯克收購社交媒體應用程序推特(Twitter)一周之后,宣布裁員數千人。媒體報道裁員人數高達3,700人,占公司近一半員工。現在,Meta的馬克·扎克伯格宣布將裁員約11,000人,約占13%的員工。
告訴員工他們將被裁員并不容易,就像告訴一個人他小時候養的愛犬即將死去一樣。但這兩位億萬富翁宣布裁員消息的方式有明顯的區別。
推特的員工在工作日之后收到的一封(無簽名的)電子郵件,知道了自己的命運。還有人無法登錄其公司郵箱或通信系統,才發現自己的崗位已經被裁撤。馬斯克后來澄清,公司向被解雇的員工提供了三個月的離職補償金。據彭博社(Bloomberg)報道,推特還在全球大規模裁員,其中印度團隊從200人減少到12人,加納的大多數被裁員工只能夠領到下個月的工資。
這封僅帶有推特簽名的電子郵件毫不避諱地說道:“正如今天早些時候所說,推特將進行裁員,以幫助改善公司健康。這種決定并不容易,我們很抱歉地通知您,您在推特的崗位受到裁員影響。”員工們不清楚哪些人受到了影響以及具體的裁員細節,而且裁員過于突然,其合法性遭到了質疑。
11月9日,輪到扎克伯格宣布這樣的壞消息。他對前Meta同事們采取了一種不同的方式。Meta官網公開發布了一封由扎克伯格簽名的信件,信中的語氣比推特的電子郵件更人性化。
扎克伯格說道:“我要對這些決定以及公司目前的處境負責。我知道這對所有人而言都是艱難的決定,尤其對受影響的人們感到抱歉。”主動承擔責任,這種做法在Meta高管中并不常見。他還表示自己沒有準確預測到新冠疫情初期的電子商務繁榮會持續。信件中明確承諾提供16周的離職補償金、移民支持和職業服務,并提供了“咨詢答疑和參與信息交流”的機會。
“埃隆·馬斯克讓馬克·扎克伯格變成了英雄”
正如扎克伯格的信件中所說的那樣,裁員從來都不是好事情,但每一位首席執行官宣布裁員決定的方式卻有顯著的差異。有些人力資源經理批評馬斯克粗暴的做法。
Security Risk Advisors的人力資源經理凱蒂·卡拉布雷斯發推文稱:“撇開潛在的法律問題不談,很多糟糕的人力資源行為都被歸結為‘當你規模化做某件事情時,必須走捷徑。’我不買賬。總有更富有同情心、更人道的選擇。領導者之所以如此懦弱,是因為他們把自己的舒適感置于他人之上,或者他們選擇不去做艱苦、耗時的工作,或者兩者兼而有之。這是軟弱、可悲而殘忍的行徑。”
盡管如此,扎克伯格并不算是最優秀的溝通者。正如《華盛頓郵報》(Washington Post)的威爾·奧雷穆斯在推文中所說,扎克伯格在與被裁職員工召開的Zoom電話會議中,沒有回答任何問題。
但在看到推特之前的冷酷做法之后,Meta和扎克伯格處理裁員的方式還是得到了一些人的認可。
攝影師丹尼爾·卡思伯特發推文稱:“我知道現在流行討厭Meta,但它們處理裁員的方式值得尊敬。”
身為億萬富翁的首席執行官們很少會因為他們的同情心或理性而受到稱贊,但在宣布裁員時,他們還是應該展現出人性化的一面,這非常重要。正如加州大學洛杉磯分校(UCLA)的教授薩拉·T·羅伯茨博士在推文中所說的那樣:“埃隆·馬斯克讓馬克·扎克伯格變成了英雄。”(財富中文網)
譯者:劉進龍
審校:汪皓
It’s been a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad string of days for tech workers.
First, Elon Musk laid off thousands of Twitter employees—reportedly as many as 3,700, or almost half of the workforce—November 4 after taking over the social media app one week before. Now, Mark Zuckerberg of Meta has announced that around 11,000 employees, roughly 13% of staff, are being let go.
Just like letting someone know that their childhood dog is dying, there’s no easy way to tell someone they’re being fired (and no, you can’t tell them that they’re going to a nice farm upstate). But there is a clear difference between the way both billionaires delivered the blow.
Twitter workers learned their fate via an (unsigned) email sent after the workday. Others found out their jobs were being eliminated after they couldn’t log on to their company email or messaging system. A three-month severance package was offered to those fired, Musk later clarified. It happened globally, too, as the Twitter team in India went from 200 to 12, per Bloomberg, and most of the staff in Ghana were fired with pay only through next month.
Signed only by Twitter, the email did not mince words: “As shared earlier today, Twitter is conducting a workforce reduction to help improve the health of the company. These decisions are never easy and it is with regret that we write to inform you that your role at Twitter has been impacted.” There was confusion about who was impacted and incoming details, and layoffs were sudden enough that their legality is being questioned.
Today, on Nov. 9, it was Zuckerberg’s turn to deliver the bad news, and he took a bit of a different approach with his former Metamates. A letter signed by Zuckerberg and shared publicly on Meta’s website struck a more personal tone than Twitter’s email.
“I want to take accountability for these decisions and for how we got here. I know this is tough for everyone, and I’m especially sorry to those impacted,” Zuckerberg said. Taking the fall in a matter uncharacteristic of Meta executives, Zuckerberg added that he had inaccurately predicted that the boom in e-commerce during the start of the pandemic would continue. The letter clearly outlined a 16-week severance package, immigration support, and career services, plus offered the opportunity to “speak with someone to get their questions answered and join information sessions.”
“Takes Elon Musk to make Mark Zuckerberg a hero”
As Zuckerberg’s message points out, there isn’t a good layoff, but there is a markedly different way that each CEO announced his choice. And some human resource managers have come out against Musk’s unsubtle approach.
“Putting aside the potential legal issues, a lot of poor HR behavior gets chalked up to ‘when you do XYZ at scale, you have to cut corners.’ I just don’t buy it. There is always a more compassionate, more moral alternative,” Katie Calabrese, human resources manager at Security Risk Advisors, tweeted. “When leaders are this craven, it’s because they’re prioritizing their own comfort above others’ or they’re opting not to put in hard, time-consuming work, or both. It’s weak, it’s pathetic, and it’s cruel.”
That being said, Zuckerberg also isn’t winning the prize for all-time best communicator, as Will Oremus of the Washington Post tweeted that Zuckerberg didn’t take any questions in his Zoom call addressing sacked employees.
Still, after seeing the bloodbath earlier at Twitter, some are recognizing Meta and Zuckerberg for how their layoffs were handled.
“I know it’s fashionable to hate on Meta at any given chance but respect is due to how they are handling the layoffs,” tweeted photographer Daniel Cuthbert.
Billionaire CEOs aren’t always famed for their empathy or grounded nature, but when announcing layoffs it’s important that they tap into their human side. As professor at UCLA Dr. Sarah T. Roberts tweets: “Takes Elon Musk to make Mark Zuckerberg a hero.”