Last week, Microsoft's financials for the quarter were released and amidst all the positive numbers were another round of company-wide layoffs. The number of employees let go hovered around 1,000 and came from all levels of the company around the world and in Redmond. Microsoft said that the reduction was part of its normal cycle of evaluating its business and nothing out of the ordinary.
Interestingly, a now deleted tweet from the official GroupMe account suggests some GroupMe employees were also affected. The tweet, which was quickly removed, stated the following:
"Most of GroupMe was laid off today. If you need your support issues handled, uhhhh good luck? (Pour_one_out)"
Since that October 21 post, the GroupMe Twitter account has been quiet only reinforcing the speculation about the job cuts.
Windows Central reached out to Microsoft for a comment and received the following response about the matter:
"The job reductions were spread across more than one business area and country and reflect adaptations to business needs. We go through this process in the most thoughtful manner possible, with the deepest respect for affected individuals." – Microsoft spokesperson
Microsoft has made no announcements about the future of GroupMe and at this time, there is no reason to believe the group messenger has been retired or specifically targeted in the latest round of layoffs.
GroupMe was acquired by Skype back in 2011 during the same time that Microsoft was already purchasing Skype. Since that time, many of the GroupMe staff were folded into the Skype team although the messenger remained as an independent entity. It is not clear what Microsoft's long-term plans are for GroupMe as it is slightly redundant with Skype and Skype for Business.
Thanks, Chad B., for the tip!
