Company: Microsoft
Date: 2015-09-01
Overall rating: 2/5
Employment status: current
Experience level: Senior

Beware of Layoffs
Pros: I think it is a good place for engineers. Lots of learning opportunities,access to tools and technologies, and internal discussion forums to get help on any topic.
Cons: Layoffs are getting out of control, especially in the field offices. Every summer they release a new "blueprint" of how many people each sub is aloud to have and what the org chart has to look like exactly. If someone in corp decides that job you are doing is not needed, everyone in each country that does that job is let go. Every year about 10% of my colleagues are let go and I had to let go my own direct reports.

This month I got the notice that my role is not in the new blueprint and I have a few weeks to find a new job. I am working in a subsidiary office and I don't get any relocation assistance to return home. I even have to pay my own way to do interviews in Seattle to find my next job. (I can do the interviews over the phone, but that would put me at too much at a disadvantage.) HR does not provide any extra assistance to help me find a new job, I am totally on my own.