SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka

The markets are savage, Spotify trading at 8% higher after laying off 17% workforce

Tech is slowly realizing that Elon was right and a huge amount of overhead is not necessary to grow these companies when you actually manage teams properly.

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16mo ago
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GroovyBoba
GroovyBoba

The long picture is even more scary. Tech companies have realised they don't need as many people once the product is up and running and there are no repercussions for laying off people once you have gotten what you wanted.You can fire anyone at anytime. And for startups it would be even more brutal, they will repeatedly reduce workforce once they are stable to cut cost and increase the runway.
Your tech overlords will make the MBB restructure guys look like bloody saints.

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

But if you think about it, the startup space is going to heat up like anything. With multiple horses running with very little employees.

GroovyBoba
GroovyBoba

And it will again lead to consolidation. Nobody wants to pay for like 50 different SaaS services.

But yea small tech firms with 5-10 employees will thrive.

CosmicDumpling
CosmicDumpling

Well one can talk about HR folks having empathy but markets dont work on that. Can hope tech markets stabilise by 2024

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

Correct

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

There is no sympathy by HR

MagicalQuokka
MagicalQuokka

Good. If the markets didn't do well enough, they'd be laying off even more people.

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

That’s actually true. 😔

FluffyCupcake
FluffyCupcake
Amazon16mo

Umm…Elon was right? Too early to say that, especially when we keep hearing big advertisers moving away from X. Secondly, big tech hiring is back with big bang. So all those layoffs were just optics for investors. In facts, the roadmap of 2023 were ruined because of all those tricks.

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

That is also very true.

TwirlyBoba
TwirlyBoba

Right on point. Most tech companies are bloated, but this trend won't last for eternity.

SwirlyKoala
SwirlyKoala
EY16mo

Are you saying that they will become bloated again?

TwirlyBoba
TwirlyBoba

No, they can't be bloated forever due to market forces and competition.

ZoomyUnicorn
ZoomyUnicorn
Adobe16mo

Nothing to be amazed about. Companies exist to make money for shareholders.
People are COGS on the balance sheet. Reducing costs which do not negatively impact revenue is a common tactic to survive when the economic outlook and revenue growth projections are muddy. Shareholders appreciate this and so the stock price appreciates. Benefits, Good/Bad cultures are just companies trying different mathematical approaches to find a maxima on the productivity - manhours curve. The appearance of giving a damn about employees is just incidental to this process. There is no selfless act.

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

Exactly 👍🏻

ZoomyMuffin
ZoomyMuffin

This isn't about Elon's view. It's more about the bad business models which over estimated revenues rather than high bloat.

Spotify is laying off because they cannot keep charging for music streaming and podcasts which YT is bundling. And they possibly aren't able to command prices on ads.

SquishyQuokka
SquishyQuokka
Gojek16mo

Exactly

JumpyHamster
JumpyHamster

Once google and youtube rollout ai features, Spotify doesn't have any moat apart from Playlist curated by folks.

Google can easily incentivize people to do the same on youtube

SwirlyKoala
SwirlyKoala
EY16mo

Welcome to e/acc world. We make money and make more of it.

JumpyHamster
JumpyHamster

K Shaped growth is clearly visible now

ZestyMuffin
ZestyMuffin

Looks like Spotify wrapped it's employees

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