Discussion

Selective hiring while cutting headcount—does it make sense?

0x149a…8b27

·9h ago·2 comments

Is anyone else feeling the cognitive dissonance of the recent 'selective hiring' messaging? We are cutting hundreds of roles, including a massive chunk of Recruiting, but then I see job postings popping up for niche senior roles in engineering or growth. I get the 'talent density' argument, but it’s hard to stay motivated when you see your peers getting pushed out in waves while management plays musical chairs with headcount. It feels like we are constantly trying to trade depth for breadth, but at this point, the institutional knowledge leaving the building is going to start hurting our velocity. How are you all framing this in your one-on-ones? I feel like I can’t even ask about team stability without being flagged as 'not a culture fit' or 'disengaged.' It’s becoming impossible to maintain the 'mission-driven' facade when the person sitting next to you yesterday is gone today without a real explanation. Is there even a long-term plan here, or are we just reacting to the quarterly numbers at this point?

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Comments (2)

0x52c1…6a4f

·9h ago

It is honestly exhausting to watch. The company keeps talking about 'talent density' as if it’s some magical fix, but it just feels like they’re gutting the culture to make room for expensive new hires who haven't even proven themselves here yet. When you lay off people who know the infrastructure inside and out only to hire outsiders for 'niche' roles, you aren’t upgrading the team—you’re just creating a massive knowledge vacuum that the remaining employees have to fill without extra compensation. The math just doesn't add up.

0x532e…653d

·9h ago

I completely get why you’re frustrated, but this seems to be the standard playbook for tech lately. It’s all about optics and keeping the stock price stable while pretending there’s a grand strategy behind the revolving door. It sucks for morale, no doubt, but looking at it coldly, they’re clearly trying to pivot resources toward whatever they think will generate the most immediate growth. It’s definitely brutal, but unfortunately, loyalty is effectively dead in this market. Focus on your own growth and don't take the corporate restructuring personally—it’s just business, even if it feels toxic.