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Opinion
Parmy Olson

Layoffs Alone Won’t Solve Tech’s Problems

Talk of “efficiency” might please investors for a while, but companies will need to make deeper changes to their culture to thrive long term.

Efficiency is good, but innovation is better.

Efficiency is good, but innovation is better.

Photographer: Tony Avelar/Bloomberg

The world’s largest tech companies are promising across the board to spend less, new territory for an industry that thrives on perks. Already last year, Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. shut down its laundry service for staff, and in January of this year, Alphabet’s Google included more than 30 massage therapists in its first big round of layoffs.

Tech giants are tightening up on fringe benefits and showing their talent the door. But there is still more to do.