Chief executives from Alphabet,, better known as the Google family of services on the internet and Meta which is more commonly referred to as the Facebook family and have all informed their huge staff that the sluggishness of profits during the last quarter could cause the businesses to take serious looks at all the employees involved to determine whether they're fulfilling their obligations. The following article is from FOX Business:
Following a disappointing fiscal quarter, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai both told staffers they have productivity concerns and are “turning up the heat” on managing staff performance.
According to audio obtained by Reuters, Zuckerberg, whose company suffered its first revenue decline in history, told staffers last week that his hope is to raise expectations and have more aggressive goals.
“Just kind of turning up the heat a little bit,” Zuckerberg was quoted as saying. “I think some of you might decide that this place isn’t for you, and that self-selection is OK with me.”
In other wors, we are too unprofessional to fire anyone, however we'll make your time here so awful that you'll be tempted to quit. Then we'll never have to pay unemployment.
Meanwhile, Pichai issued similar concerns. Pichai reportedly told staffers last week that there are “real concerns that our productivity as a whole is not where it needs to be for the head count we have.” The comments were first reported by CNBC.
Google’s revenue growth during the past quarter decelerated to its slowest pace in two years as advertisers reined in their spending amid intensifying fears of an economic recession. Second quarter revenue rose 13% this year compared to 62% in last year’s comparable quarter.
But keep in mind that we're not in the midst of a recession.
Although rising gas prices could theoretically result in more people spending more time online, as they are avoiding driving, inflation is dragging the economy down. Even the giants aren't protected from the effects of inflation. Market Realist says:
In March, Google laid off several employees that were working in the cloud support area. To some, the layoff round was interesting given that it occurred right around the time that Google acquired Mandiant for a whopping $5.4 billion. Those affected by the cuts were engineers in Zurich, Sydney, Austin, and California. It isn’t clear if another layoff sweep is coming for Google but signs say one might be on the horizon.
Meta implemented a hiring freeze in May. The conversation is heated and thick within the company as up to 10% of employees currently employed could be let go. Or they might quit, as mentioned above.
It's always a shame that George Santayana's famous quote (“Those who don't remember the past are likely to repeat the past”) has the smudge of being posted over that of the madman Jim Jones' “throne” in Jonestown from where he started his satanic reign of terror and forced suicide in mass quantities. Although Google has removed its “don't be evil” mantra in favor of a more radical leftist censorship, and Facebook has done the same, both have failed to realize that online companies and services have extremely short shelf life.
America Online was once a hugely popular site with numerous online communities. Today, it's an unpopular website. Cyberspace does not have a loyal following, however it does recognize the reality of economics. Google and Facebook's warning shots aimed at their employees' heads may be enough to warn young people that God said to Adam,
“By the sweat of your brow
will you have food to eat
until you return to the ground
from which you were made.
For you were made from dust,
and to dust you will return.”
He also included them in his warning.
