Microsoft announced a voluntary exit programme for eligible employees across four countries - India, the US, the UK and Canada. According to reports from Business Standard, the programme offers financial support and career planning resources to employees considering leaving the company. The software giant is offering voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 employees globally, representing approximately 27% of Microsoft's total workforce of 223,000, as reported by CNBC. Microsoft has approximately 23,000 employees in India, though there is no immediate clarity on how many would be eligible for the voluntary exit programme. This marks the second voluntary buyout offer that Microsoft has offered employees this year, following an earlier voluntary retirement programme in April that was open to around 7% of its US workforce. The latest buyout offer comes as Microsoft's global headcount has decreased from 228,000 at the end of 2025 to 223,000 at the end of June, as reported in regulatory filings. The programme is open to about 60,000 people in participating teams across the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and India, with no age or tenure requirement, as reported by GeekWire.
As reported by Livemint, the buyout programme will be available to certain employees in the US, Canada, India and the UK at the vice president level and below. According to people familiar with the terms, divisions such as Xbox, Windows, Copilot and finance will fully participate in the buyout programme. However, certain groups of employees will be excluded from the offer, including some workers involved in data centres, sales, marketing, cybersecurity and quantum computing. Microsoft declined to comment on these specific details, though a spokesperson confirmed that employees who accept the offer would receive benefits similar to those provided under a standard severance package. Microsoft Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer Amy Coleman stated that the voluntary exit offer is available to employees at level 70 and below in participating teams, designed as a time-limited initiative to provide greater flexibility to employees considering opportunities outside the company. "The Voluntary Exit Offer reflects an important part of how we're evolving our approach to change: creating greater flexibility and, where possible, more ways for employees to shape their next chapter," Coleman told employees in a memo. "This builds on what we learned earlier this year through the Voluntary Retirement Program."
According to Business Standard, a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the company continues to invest in India's talent and technology ecosystem, backing the country's AI ambitions with USD 20.5 billion in committed investment between 2025 and 2029 across cloud and AI infrastructure, skilling and operations. The spokesperson added that the company is on track to fulfil its commitment of equipping 20 million people across India with AI skills by 2030. Coleman emphasized that there is no one-size-fits-all approach, stating that Microsoft would seek to balance changing business requirements with opportunities for employees to grow and contribute. The company is in the midst of a business model transformation, increasingly trying to charge clients based on how much AI they actually use, as reported by Business Standard. Microsoft has armed programmers, sellers and supply chain workers with AI tools and observed noticeable results from this approach. The Voluntary Exit Offer includes financial support and career planning resources, with eligible employees receiving details by email, as reported by GeekWire.
Microsoft is offering voluntary buyouts as it seeks to balance heavy investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure with the need to maintain capital efficiency. The company has been increasing its spending on data centres to meet rising demand for AI computing and provide cloud services to companies including Anthropic and OpenAI. In April, Microsoft announced its first-ever voluntary retirement programme, which was open to around 7% of its US workforce. According to CNBC, around 30% of those eligible took the voluntary retirement plan. The latest buyout offer comes as Microsoft's global headcount has decreased from 228,000 at the end of 2025 to 223,000 at the end of June, as reported in regulatory filings. The investment has put pressure on the company's finances, prompting it to explore workforce restructuring measures. In July, Microsoft announced plans to lay off 4,800 employees, demonstrating the company's ongoing efforts to optimize its workforce structure. Microsoft said in July that it had redeployed more than 4,000 employees into new roles over the previous year, as reported by GeekWire.
As reported by Business Standard, the programme will not be implemented uniformly across Microsoft's operations, with participation depending on individual business priorities, customer commitments and workforce requirements. Unlike the earlier voluntary retirement programme, Microsoft has not set a target for the number of employees it expects to leave through the latest offer. According to Livemint, Microsoft expects significantly fewer employees to accept the latest buyout proposal than the voluntary retirement programme. In some cases, Microsoft will try to retain top talent if employees opt to take the buyout offer. The company is scheduled to report its third-quarter results later this week, with investors focused on signs that heavy AI spending is paying off. Microsoft shares rose about 1% at midday in New York following the announcement. The programme gives Microsoft units "another way to adapt their workforce to changing needs," Coleman wrote in the memo to employees. The 51-year-old maker of Windows and Office wants to ensure that it has the right talent to go after its most compelling new growth opportunities in the AI era. Microsoft reports quarterly earnings Wednesday afternoon, which could include projections for the cost of the new buyout offer, with the company disclosing a $900 million charge for the retirement program in its April earnings report.
