The restructuring launched recently by Amazon continues with the announcement by the company in a blog post that it would eliminate 16,000 positions.
In October of last year, Amazon revealed it would lay off 14,000 employees. And, just days ago, Amazon unveiled a plan to close its food- and everyday essentials-oriented Fresh and Go operations to focus on its Whole Foods and grocery delivery. Amazon also is planning to build its first superstore in the Chicago area.
Beth Galetti, Amazon senior vice president of people experience and technology, noted in a blog post the company has been “working to strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy. While many teams finalized their organizational changes in October, other teams did not complete that work until now.”
Even with the layoffs, Galetti pointed out, Amazon will continue hiring and investing in strategic areas and functions critical to the company’s future. As the technology has developed, Amazon has been investing in its artificial intelligence development for its own use and as part of its AWS business services operation.
In an October third-quarter conference call, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said that, as an organization grows as fast as Amazon has in the past several years in enterprise size, staffing and operating locations, more people wind up working in more layers across the business structure. The result can be a weakening in the sense of ownership employees have in their roles, he said, adding that can affect productivity and slow decision making, suggesting that right-sizing the organization would be a priority, especially given the implementation of technology to assist staffers in their functions. Jassy asserted the initial layoffs were more about culture and reestablishing an entrepreneurial environment than the availability of new technology, although he did not rule out AI as an influence on future staffing decisions.
As she announced the layoffs, Galetti maintained Amazon does not have plans to announce additional broad staffing cuts, although each team in the organization would continue “to evaluate the ownership, speed and capacity to invent for customers, and make adjustments as appropriate. That’s never been more important than it is today in a world that’s changing faster than ever.”
