How Layoffs at Block Inc End a Bruising January for Tech Workers

Block Inc. payments company is laying off 10% of its workforce. Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Block and former CEO of Twitter, confirmed most of the layoffs would come from the CashApp, Square, and Foundational businesses.

The layoffs follow earlier directives for teams to focus on “stronger performance” and “stricter prioritization.” Dorsey said management “want to take [action] immediately, rather than let uncertainty prevail.

Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Follows Tech

Most of the layoffs at CashApp will affect Global Marketing and Commerce. Square will lose talent in the Marketing and Creative departments, while Foundational will cut middle management. According to Dorsey, the layoffs were needed to make “every discipline…leaner.”

Block is following a trend as tech and crypto companies remove redundancies and focus on a handful of strategic products. Last year, Meta (formerly Facebook) cut one-third of its staff to eliminate middle managers overseeing different department projects. Ledger, a Paris-based crypto wallet company, reduced its headcount by 12% last year.

Read more: Web3 vs. Traditional Tech Careers: Which Is Right for You?

Google, Amazon, and Microsoft recently cut staff to focus on products in artificial intelligence. Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, said the company’s layoffs are unlikely to stop anytime soon. The company has trimmed staff in several divisions, including at YouTube and the team developing the company’s smartphone, Pixel.

Block Inc May Have Waited for Others

According to Aheel Mehnot, a venture capitalist at Better Tomorrow, companies wait for a first-mover to break the stigma before cutting staff. They can then use the excuse, “It’s not us-it’s the industry.”

Or, as was seen after Elon Musk took over X, the layoffs could signal the start of a new era in the company amid the plans of a new leader. The scale of X’s staff cuts, which has reduced the employee base by 80%, signaled an about-face for Jack Dorsey’s former company. From a social media app, X is now becoming a global town square that may pioneer novel crypto social media payment features.

Read more: How Can Crypto Marketers Use Twitter (X) to Their Advantage?

Tech employers appear to be engaging in three types of layoffs presently, according to Nabeel Hyatt of Spark Capital. Big companies prioritize profits, while others simply try to survive.

“Big, fat tech oligopolies looking for more growth and profit; there are the medium-size companies that over-hired during boom times; and there are the smaller start-ups that are just trying to gain runway to survive.”