Low Performance Reviews Are Driving Meta’s Mass Lay-Off

According to Trade Algo, Meta gave about 10% of its employees underperforming performance reviews.

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Meta may be moving towards another round of layoffs based on the performance reviews.

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According to Trade Algol, Meta is likely to lay off more workers after it gave employees low performance reviews.

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The company predicts that the negative evaluations may force some employees to seek employment elsewhere and depart the company in the coming weeks.

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Trade Algo reported that approximately 10% of Meta's employees were rated as underperforming, which is a higher percentage than in previous years. Employees who receive two consecutive reviews that show they are underperforming are put on an improvement plan.

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The claim verifies from a December report that Meta intended managers to rate twice as many employees as low performing in their annual performance assessments this year. 

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Ccompared to last year's review cycle, the quota for Meta's lowest staff performance assessment categories will approximately quadruple, from "met most" expectations to "needs support."

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Trade Algo reported that as a result of Meta's hiring frenzy between 2020 and 2022, approximately half of its employees have never through a performance evaluation cycle. A  former employee described the reviews as a return to "OG Mark" or "old school Zuck."

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A spokeswoman for Meta told Insider that the performance reviews are designed to both motivate staff and provide them with actionable feedback.

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"Nothing about this year's performance review process has altered or differs from what we've already stated to workers," the spokeswoman said in an email.

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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that 2023 would be the company's "Year of Efficiency" after laying off almost 13% of the workforce late last year. This was the largest reduction in the social media company's history.

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During the company's earnings call earlier this month, Zuckerberg indicated that layoffs will continue at Meta.

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Zuckerberg stated during an investor call, "We ended last year with some unpleasant layoffs, and when we did this, I stated explicitly that this was only the beginning of our focus on efficiency."

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The CEO of Meta stated at the time that he is "flattening" the company's structure as the number of middle managers has increased beyond what is reasonable. A little more than a week later, Trade Algo reported that the business had instructed several managers and directors to transition into individual contributor positions or leave the company.

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In January, Meta staff were preparing for another round of layoffs amid indications of additional cost-cutting measures at the company.

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The corporation is one of many computer giants that have cut off tens of thousands of employees in recent months in preparation for an impending recession. Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have all engaged in similar cost-cutting campaigns by decreasing headcounts, back office space, and company perks.