LinkedIn, which recently turned 20 years old, has announced a fresh set of layoffs. The professional social network said it"s pulling the plug on its China-focused jobs app InCareer which will lead to the departure of 716 employees.
InCareer was launched in China as a spinoff app in December 2021, shortly after LinkedIn shut down the Chinese version of its main app. While the new app experienced some success in the initial years, it eventually had to face "fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic climate," LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky said in an email sent to all employees.
The shelving of InCareer is part of LinkedIn"s planned changes for China and its Global Business Organization (GBO). While the company is experiencing record engagement on its platform, it"s also "seeing shifts in customer behavior and slower revenue growth," Roslansky said.
One of the main competitors of the app in China is MaiMai, which takes an edge by allowing users to make anonymous posts. Roslansky said that the departing employees who are eligible for U.S. benefits will get severance pay, continuing health coverage, and career transition services.
On the other hand, benefits for employees working outside the U.S. will have to align with local employment laws in their respective countries. The company will wind down the InCareer app in China by August 9.
What"s left in its China strategy is LinkedIn will help companies operating in China to hire, market, and train abroad. For this purpose, it will retain the Talent, Marketing, and Learning business in the country.
LinkedIn is also shutting down its Business Productivity team and reducing some management roles as part of its reorganization. However, starting May 15, it has plans to add 250 new roles in specific segments of its operations, new business, and account management teams.
Roslansky said they are expecting the fiscal year 2024 to remain challenging and added that LinkedIn "will continue to manage our expenses as we invest in strategic growth areas, knowing that the foundations we are putting in place now - for innovation, agility and scale - are setting us up for the years ahead."
He also mentioned that "AI is just beginning to accelerate changes in the global economy and labor market." Speaking of which, the company has released GPT-powered tools that can write profile bios and draft messages for hiring managers on behalf of job seekers.
The recent layoff announcement comes after an unknown number of employees were let go earlier this year. LinkedIn"s parent Microsoft also cut 10,000 jobs across the company, representing around 5% of its workforce. You can find more details about the InCareer Discontinuation in this support document.
Via BBC