Microsoft set to cut 18,000 jobs

Redmond (USA), July 18:

on Thursday announced its decision to cut 18,000

this year, the biggest-ever in its history.

The lay-off will mean Microsoft's workforce could be reduced by nearly 15 per cent since the acquisition of Nokia in April this year.

Sources in Microsoft said the company is "moving now" on 13,000 of the job reduction with a huge cut set to materialise in the next six months and fully implemented in the next one year. Over 12,000 of the cuts will occur in the Nokia Devices and Services unit, which is roughly half of that unit's total workforce.

The job cuts hint at the tough decisions that the new CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, had hinted at to improve the company's position in the realm of technology. "The first step to building the right organization for our ambitions is to realign our workforce," Nadella said in a note to employees Thursday.

Microsoft, after years of dominance, is now a distant third in the market for computing devices, including PCs, phones and tablets.

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