Some say that Redmond should announce the name of those fired right away

Jul 18, 2014 06:58 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella announced yesterday that 18,000 jobs would be cut over the next 12 months as part of the acquisition of Nokia's Devices and Services unit.

As expected, the news came as a shock for many of those working for Microsoft, especially when it comes to the amount of jobs that will be eliminated following these 12 intense months.

In an article published on Business Insider, a Microsoft employee who asked not to be named for obvious reasons said that everyone was "shell shocked" to hear that Nadella is firing so many people and pointed out that the CEO should announce the name of those affected right now and not in the next 6 months as planned.

"The feeling inside Microsoft on main campus is a bit shell-shocked at the size of the planned cuts," the employee said, explaining that he was among the lucky ones and didn't get affected by the job cut.

"The next six months will be a drain on morale. Cut now! Get the surgery over with and move on."

It appears that Microsoft's middle managers knew about Satya Nadella's job cutting plans for some time, and because they were among the most worried that they could be fired, many decided to update their LinkedIn profiles with new information and photos.

The same source says that these middle managers also informed some other Microsoft employees that a major layoff is coming, so everyone was expecting "some" jobs to be eliminated.

And still, the 18,000 cut shocked pretty much everyone, even though the company was expected to top the previous layoff announced by Steve Ballmer in 2009 that affected some 5,000 jobs.

Many employees working in Seattle have already been notified that they would get fired, but approximately 5,000 cuts are yet to be announced, which obviously causes more tension within the company. Nadella said that everyone would get a notification in the next 6 months.

"It’s important to note that while we are eliminating roles in some areas, we are adding roles in certain other strategic areas. My promise to you is that we will go through this process in the most thoughtful and transparent way possible. We will offer severance to all employees impacted by these changes, as well as job transition help in many locations, and everyone can expect to be treated with the respect they deserve for their contributions to this company," Nadella said.