On this blog, we recently discussed the spate of tech layoffs and the ramifications for human resources managers and job-hunters. While the trend in 2014 might appear to be a crisis for employment at tech companies, experts say the reality is much more promising.
For the Albuquerque Journal, Katie Benner says the high rate of layoffs in tech represents a kind of pruning the industry must do to ensure innovation. By weeding out the unnecessary or redundant positions on a tech team, companies are able to restructure themselves into leaner, more goal-oriented entities. Especially as advances are made in technology, systems may require fewer hands on deck, though it's vital for those hands to be the most capable in the industry.
"These big companies also laid off a lot of employees," writes Benner. "…I don't like that executives and venture-capitalists in sunny Silicon Valley like to sit back and talk about the necessary evil of creative destruction (which includes lots of job losses), but leave out the word 'evil' as they philosophize. But I agree with them: It's absolutely necessary for all of these companies to clean house."
For many firms, layoffs are a vehicle to taking one step back before taking two steps forward. Course-correction in staffing is just as important as filling vacancies, especially if a company finds those vacant positions aren't essential to reaching the next level.
The profile of tech firms has changed dramatically. Industry giants are as focused on acquisition strategy as ever, and 2014 was the biggest year for tech mergers since the dot-com boom. Cybersecurity has come to the forefront of staffing needs, as high-profile breaches threaten to derail and humiliate firms that are considered "tight ships." Layoffs are merely growing pains in an industry that prioritizes innovation and mutation of existing paradigms.
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