'This will be tough': Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg explains layoff timeline for 10,000 job cuts

Meta has announced that it will be laying off approximately 10,000 employees in a bid to improve efficiency and optimize financial performance. The layoffs are part of Meta's "Year of Efficiency" initiative, aimed at making the company a better technology company and enhancing its long-term vision.

In a memo to employees, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined the timeline for the layoffs. He has announced that in the next couple of months, the organisation's leaders will announce restructuring plans focused on 'flattening' the company's orgs. In order to do that, Facebook's parent company Meta will be canceling lower-priority projects and reducing hiring rates.

The recruiting team will also be reduced in size. The company expects to announce restructurings and layoffs in its tech groups in late April and then in its business groups in late May. In some cases, it may take until the end of the year to complete the changes.

Zuckerberg acknowledged that the layoffs would be difficult, but emphasized that they were necessary for the company's long-term success. He stated that the company would support affected employees and treat them with gratitude for their contributions to the company.

The layoffs come as part of a broader effort to make Meta a more efficient and technical company. The company is focusing on several parallel workstreams to improve organizational efficiency, increase developer productivity and tooling, optimize distributed work, and more. Meta is also planning to lift hiring and transfer freezes in each group after the restructuring is complete.

Zuckerberg stated that Meta's vision is to build new ways for people to feel closer and enable every person to feel as strong a sense of connection as they do when physically with someone they love. To achieve this vision, Meta is doing leading work across a wide range of advanced technologies, including AI, the metaverse, new media formats, encryption, and business tools.

Also read: Meta fires 10,000 employees: Read Mark Zuckerberg's letter to his employees

As part of its Year of Efficiency initiative, Meta is making its organization flatter by removing multiple layers of management. Many managers will become individual contributors, and individual contributors will report into almost every level to improve information flow and decision-making.

Despite the challenges of the layoffs, Zuckerberg remains optimistic about Meta's future. He emphasized that Meta is the best place to invent the future and apply the best ideas to reach people at the greatest scale. With a focus on efficiency and innovation, Meta is well-positioned to continue building the future of human connection.