The Applicant Manager Blog

Subscribe to Email Updates

Search

Recent Posts

3 Surprising Ways an All-In-One Solution Will Disappoint You

3 Surprising Ways an All-In-One Solution Will Disappoint You

Let’s say that, for your next date-night, you choose the new fancy steakhouse in town. Their chef is world-famous, and you’ve never seen such stellar reviews for a pricey steak dinner. They promise to cater to your every need for the evening, and the meal does not...

How to Provide the Best Candidate Experience

The biggest part of a candidates experience takes place before even making contact with them. Oftentimes, this process begins the moment they find a job post from your company. Ensuring that this process is smooth for job seekers sets the tone for how they approach...

Tech Giant Yahoo! Mistakenly Terminates 30 Employees

by | Feb 1, 2016 | HR News, Uncategorized

yahoo_logo-01

We don’t usually blog about HR news, but this was news that we had to share. 

Less than two weeks after reporting that Yahoo! Chief Executive Officer, Marissa Mayer, had announced she would not be firing anyone “this week”, The New York Post reports that the head of the tech pioneer has proceeded to not only fire someone, but accidentally so, to the tune of approximately 30 employees.

While a Yahoo! Spokesperson claims this to be a rumor, and completely false, inside sources told the New York Post that Yahoo! had begun to compile lists of lower performing employees whom were never intended to be terminated.

Mayer began mistakenly firing these associates before anyone communicated those intentions with supervisors and managers. Sources shared with James Covert of the New York Post that leaders were complaining, “this is the only person who does this job, how could you do this?”

The termination of one employee involves several departments, considerable planning, and careful consideration. The termination of 30 employees at one time, without supervisors and managers being aware of it, begs the question, how did no one sense that something was wrong before it was too late?

This incident comes just weeks after Business Insider reported that Yahoo! planned to lay off 10 percent of their workforce in an effort to get their company back on track. This report was not able to be confirmed, however, insiders shared rumors that it was likely closer over 20 percent.

People say that all news is good news.  Certainly this is an exception and falls into the category of very bad news. What lessons can we all learn from this?  How will this affect Yahoo’s brand as an employer of choice?